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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28199904">A Haunted Kiss</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/accioweasleys4/pseuds/accioweasleys4'>accioweasleys4</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, Fluff and Angst, Friendship/Love, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 23:21:14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Not Rated</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>25,776</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28199904</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/accioweasleys4/pseuds/accioweasleys4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The war is over. Hermione has been avoiding her friends because she has been trying to spare Ron a broken heart when she realized that she didn't have any feelings for him. What happens to the three friends after the war is over? Where will they go next? AU. Cover is temporary and not made by me.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hermione Granger/Fred Weasley</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>34</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Authors note: This is my second Fremione fanfiction I wrote.  Yes, it will be a Fremione fic. And yes, Fred didn't die during the Battle of Hogwarts. Disclaimer: I do not own the lovely world of Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling gets the credit for creating this world along with the characters! I hope you like this story. This will most likely be a multi-chapter story. I have a few ideas to work with. Please review! And I do not own the cover.  Also sorry this scene was movie canon more. I don't reread the seventh book much because of a certain death.</strong>
</p><hr/><p>That kiss was all Hermione Granger could think about. It was a kiss that meant everything to her, though at the same time, it meant nothing to her. That broke her heart because she wanted to want it to mean something. It made sense to want it. However, she could not force love. She didn't want to ever do that.</p><p>Hermione Granger sighed as she replayed the kiss that had happened between her and Ron Weasley during the battle of Hogwarts. Harry was off with Luna, looking for the Ravenclaw diadem. Ron had gotten the idea that the Basilisk's teeth would still be good to destroy horcruxes, so they went down to the Chamber of Secrets to get one. She had been so proud of him during those moments. He was so brave, and brilliant. Hermione thought that she had seen Ronald in a different light during those moments.</p><p>Ron let her destroy Helga's Hufflepuff Cup there, one of the horcruxes. They stared into each other's eyes after, and she could not help but wonder if he was going to kiss her. Hermione made herself relax as he seemed to move even closer, slowly. At that moment, she wanted the kiss. But at the same time, the idea of it terrified her. All of her thoughts escaped her when he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. It felt like they never going to get the chance to kiss each other again because of the way he was kissing her. Hermione had thought that she would feel something after spending months thinking that she might have feelings for Ronald. She wanted to feel something in it, because she knew that he did.</p><p>When they pulled away moments later, she was disappointed to realize that she did not feel anything at all. He had smiled at her and reached for her hand. The look that he gave her crushed her. He looked at her like he thought she was the most wonderful thing in the world. Hermione knew better though. </p><p>She was not anything close to what he thought she was right now. They started walking toward where the battle was going on. She did not have the heart to say anything about the kiss and her feelings then. They were about to walk into battle after all. They both needed to be prepared for anything. If she broke his heart now, there was no telling what would happen to him. Hermione might not be in love with Ronald, but she knew that she would hate herself if anything happened to him.</p><p>Weeks had passed since Lord Voldemort had been defeated. Hermione last saw her two best friends when they destroyed the Elder Wand. Harry had destroyed it because he thought that it caused more trouble than good for everybody. </p><p>Hermione had thought that Harry was reasonable, but Ronald looked a little green at the thought of destroying the unbeatable wand. Hermione had spent the past few weeks volunteering at St. Mungo's. </p><p>They needed extra Healer's, and she wanted to help people that had been hurt in the war. She was glad that it was over, though things would not be normal for a long time. Staying busy did not help get rid of that ache that she had in her heart. She missed her best friends. She thought about writing to them after her volunteer shift ended. Hermione was going to head to Australia in a few days to bring her parents home. She thought that she should at least write her friends to let them know where she was going in case they were wondering about her.</p><p>A smile appeared on her lips as she thought about seeing her parents again. She missed them so much during the past year, though she knew that she had done the right thing by modifying their memories, changing their names and putting them in hiding. It had been for their safety when the war was going on. When she got home that day, she had just settled into her flat in Diagon Alley and was beginning to write her friends a letter when she heard a knock on the door.</p><p>She checked the peephole to see who it was, and blinked in surprise when she saw that it was Ronald. Hermione quickly opened the door to let him in. "Ron!" She said, unable to keep the tone of curiosity out of her voice. "What are you doing here? You are soaked! Come sit by the fire, and I will get you a towel!" She noticed that it was storming for the first time. The rain had made her think of their first kiss, though Hermione did not want to dwell on it too much.</p><p>"No, no, you don't have to do all that. I just wanted to see you," Ron said quickly, and Hermione stopped in her tracks. Her guard was up again, she couldn't help it.</p><p>"Ok...is anything wrong?" She asked nervously, knowing that they never really needed an excuse to see each other before the kiss.</p><p>"No...actually, do you have any hot tea? I could use that now!" Ronald said, and Hermione noticed that he had changed the subject quickly.</p><p>"I can make some for you," Hermione said, glad that she had a distraction. She knew that she was making things more difficult than they had to be, but she hated these situations. The last time she had to deal with boy problems was when she was with Viktor Krum. That breakup had been easier because it was by a letter. She could not exactly break up with Ron through a letter right now. After all, they weren't even dating. They had just kissed once.</p><p>She bustled about in her kitchen, getting the tea ready and stared out the window. <em>How much longer was she going to pull this off?</em> She wondered to herself. She could not avoid Ron forever, especially when he was right in her living room! Hermione hated knowing that this was going to crush his heart.</p><p>Hermione grabbed a teacup from the cabinet and said loudly, "Hey Ron, do you want some honey in your tea?" She had forgotten if he liked honey at all. She waited a few seconds, but there was silence. She frowned and started to turn around. "Ron?"</p><p>She turned around to take a step, but she was startled when she saw him there on his knee. The sight made her drop the teacup, but she took no notice of it, not even when it crashed and broke on the floor.</p><p>"Oh my Merlin!" She said faintly as she covered her mouth with her hands in shock. <em>This was not happening. This was not happening! Maybe it is not what I think it is. Maybe he just had to tie his shoe... </em>Hermione looked down to see if that was the case, but he was staring at her the same way that he had after they kissed. </p><p>Her heart leapt to her throat, though it was not in a good way. She was surprised that she had not even heard him come up behind her. Hermione wished she had, though she knew that it would not have done any good right now. She swallowed nervously as Ron cleared his throat and reached for something in his pocket.</p><p>The movement made her panic inside, though all she could do right then was stare at him with wide eyes.</p><p>"Hermione Granger..." Ron nervously held the box open, and inside was a beautiful ring. It was silver, with just a small, simple diamond on it. Tears threatened to come out of her eyes, and she backed into the kitchen stove, accidently knocking the kettle over this time. Tea spilled onto the floor, but she took no notice of that either. All she could do then was watch the scene before her. Ron cleared his throat nervously again, before speaking again.</p><p>"I have loved you for awhile now. When we kissed, everything seemed to have made sense. Everything that had happened to me so far up to that moment fell into place. You make me want to be a better person. Basically what I am trying to say is..." he chuckled nervously, but never took his eyes off her.</p><p>"Will you marry me?"</p><p>Hermione was sure that she had turned pale right after he asked her. Her mind was spinning, though she knew that she could not put this off anymore. She never pretended to have feelings for him. She could not start that either, no matter how much she wished for this to happen a different way.</p><p>She knelt down finally and closed his hands slowly. A startled look appeared in his eyes, but Hermione shook her head sadly. "I'm sorry Ron," she began gently, hoping that her voice sounded sincere. "I can't marry you. I'm not the one for you." Her voice broke, and tears came down her face as she quickly got up.</p><p>Ron got up as well, though she wished that he had not followed her. "Hermione...I thought we had something. Did I just imagine things?" He asked her, and she sniffed before wiping her eyes to look at him again.</p><p>"I thought there was something," she began softly. "I wanted it to be real. But there wasn't anything there for me. I didn't feel that <em>spark, </em>you know? I don't have those feelings you are supposed to have when you are in love," she said sadly, and his face fell. Hermione turned away as guilt rushed through her. How many times was she going to have to do this before she met the right one?</p><p>"We can just date each other for awhile and see if anything happens. Love takes time sometimes. We never really dated at all. Let's go out on a date," Ron said hopefully, trying to talk her into this.</p><p>Hermione shook her head, knowing that she was probably being stubborn about this. "I wouldn't be true to myself. You can't make love happen. It just...happens. I'm sorry. I just can't be with you like that."</p><p>Ron had grown quiet for several moments, so she met his eyes again and saw that a look of anger appeared on his face. She opened her mouth to speak, but then decided not to. Fighting wasn't going to be a good way to solve this problem. Ron looked like he wanted to say something to her, but twice he thought better of it and instead stormed out of the room.</p><p>"Ron?" she asked, following him out of the room. He glared at her before picking up his jacket and opened the door.</p><p> "RON!" She cried out, and rushed forward. "Don't leave like this, please! You always leave like this! Why do you always leave when there is conflict between us?" She demanded, following him outside into the rain. </p><p>He stopped for a second and turned toward her. "I always walk out because it keeps me from saying something that I might regret later," he said coolly. </p><p>Hermione took a step forward toward him to bring him back inside, but he had disapperated into the air before she could reach him. "RON WEASLEY!" She shouted angrily.</p><p> Oh, she hated him at this moment. She knew this wasn't going to end well once she told him no, but she had hoped that he would at least let them finish their talk. Fear crashed through her as she pictured his angry expression again. He had never looked at her like that before.</p><p>Hermione Granger was sure that she had just lost one of her best friends. The sudden thought made her sink to her knees on the ground as tears started pouring down her face. This was not how she wanted this to go at all. "I'm sorry," she whispered, knowing that he was long gone. There was probably nothing she could do to fix it either.</p><hr/><p>
  <b>Thank you for reading! </b>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <b>Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter. Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling does. I am just writing this story for fun.</b>
</p><hr/><p>A month had passed since Ronald Weasley had proposed to Hermione Granger. Shortly after Ron proposed to her, she had gone to Australia to visit her aunt and parents. She had been hoping to modify their memories and bring them home.</p><p>But Hermione had learned from her aunt that her parents had died. They had been found by one of Lord Voldemort's followers. The news had buried her with guilt, and she had kept to herself since she had gotten back from Australia.</p><p>It was the hardest month ever. She had not been able to speak to either of her best friends, though she desperately missed them. Hermione knew that Harry would be able to understand what it was like to lose parents, but being around him would make her think of Ron. She knew that he would not want to talk to her any time soon because of Ron.</p><p>He obviously would have sided with Ron about the proposal since they had been best friends first. In the past, Harry had sometimes sided with Ron, and she felt like this would be one of those times. She made her way down Diagon Alley toward her flat when she ran into somebody.</p><p>"Everything in the store is half off today! Come on in and shop for a relative's birthday! Shop for Christmas for all we care!" Hermione's eyes widened when she saw that she had ran into one of the Weasley twins. </p><p>Her heart sank.</p><p><em>Of course.</em> She was bound to run into them at one time or another since they lived in the same perimeter now. George Weasley must have spotted her right when she turned away because she heard his voice call after her.</p><p>"Hey, Granger! Wait!" He grabbed her arm and Hermione sighed as she stopped walking away and turned toward him. There was no way around avoiding him now. "I'm sorry for running into you. Can we just not do this whole friends thing? Please?"</p><p>George shook his head, and she was startled to see that his expression was serious. "No...Fred and I have been hoping to talk to you. He is doing an errand now though. Can you come in? Please? I'll fix you lunch! The only thing that I have mastered cooking is grilled cheese...but it is amazing."</p><p>Hermione looked up and sighed while trying to think of a reason that would get her out of this. She thought that taking care of Crookshanks would not slide by George. "All right," she answered quietly. She managed to give George a small smile when he grinned at her and opened the door for her. She waited for him while he locked the door and put a sign that said out to lunch on it.</p><p>"I'll have anything but tea," Hermione said quickly as they walked through the twins shop. George glanced back at her curiously but nodded when she said that. Tea made Hermione think of a certain redhead, and she could not handle thinking of him right now.</p><p>She wished she did not have to be around George either, but he was not really the one she was mad at. She decided she would rather be around him instead. Hermione glanced around the shop as the two went up the stairs.</p><p>"How is business?" She asked, deciding to try to make conversation. George shrugged. "It has been picking up again since the war was over. It is nothing to complain about at all."</p><p>Hermione nodded in response as they made their way into the twin's flat. Hermione did not speak again until George asked her how she wanted her sandwich. Lunch was rather quiet since the two were making small talk with each other. Hermione tried to listen but she kept tuning out. She finally paid attention when George grew serious again.</p><p>"Listen Hermione... I am sorry about how things turned out with Ron. We heard that he proposed to you." Hermione flushed as she met George's eyes. She should have known that everyone in his family would have heard about this. "It is ok... I turned him down," she murmured softly, looking embarrassed. "How is he?"</p><p>George shrugged nonchalantly. "Honestly... he's not that great. But we're not upset with you. We were surprised that you had begun dating at all, really."</p><p>Hermione sighed as she realized that the family assumed that they were dating. "We never really dated," she informed him lightly. "I just thought... there was something there. We kissed during the battle of Hogwarts and I didn't have any feelings then. I did not mean to lead him on," she said, defending herself as George held his hands up in defense.</p><p>"I'm not judging you," he answered honestly. "Truthfully, I think you deserve better." </p><p>Hermione blinked in surprise. "Really?" she asked, and he nodded. "Yeah, Ron had been a jerk to you in the past too many times to count. We were surprised that things had changed for you at all." </p><p>Hermione thought of the times Ron made her cry. There was the time they fought over the Yule Ball dates, and when he thought her cat ate his old pet rat. And then there was the night of their proposal as well.</p><p>"Yeah," Hermione murmured quietly. George's comment made her think of more memories between her two best friends.</p><p>Her mind went to their recent adventures, though those memories caused her to get tears in her eyes. She saw his eyes grow wide as he walked over to her and hunched down beside her. "Hey, I did not mean to make you cry over him...I'm sorry," George said softly, as Hermione shook her head and sniffled.</p><p>"No, no... it's not just that. I recently found out that my parents...they...they died... they were killed by one of the Death Eaters." Tears strolled down when she said those words. George paled and his expression grew sober. "Oh, Hermione... I'm so sorry," George said quietly.</p><p>He reached over and hugged her, though the gesture seemed to have made her cry even harder. George was the first person she had told that her parents had died. Telling somebody outside of her family was harder than she expected it to be. He held her like that for a few minutes until footsteps were heard coming up the steps.</p><p>"George, there you are! I was wondering where you were at...." Hermione heard Fred's voice trail off as he came to a stop. The two pulled apart and Hermione wiped her eyes quickly.</p><p>"Hello, Hermione," he said quietly, gazing at the two curiously. Hermione lowered her eyes. She did not really want to go over the whole conversation she just had with George again. When she did not answer, George spoke up.</p><p>"Hermione and I ran into each other outside, so I invited her up to lunch..." George's voice sounded awkward, and she decided that it was time to leave. She had extended her stay long enough.</p><p>"Yes, it was very good. Thank you, George. I really ought to get going now though." She quickly wiped the rest of her tears and stood up to leave. He got up as well, though when she started walking towards the door he stopped her.</p><p>"I really am sorry, Hermione. Please don't be a stranger. We're your friends too." He nodded at Fred when he said that. Hermione nodded quietly before she walked down the stairs after saying a quick goodbye. She did not mean to take off so quickly like she did, but she could only handle talking to one person right then.</p><hr/><p>
  <b>Thanks for reading! </b>
</p><p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>A/N: Sorry there aren't many Fremione moments yet, but those will be soon! I usually think that George is the sensitive twin so he would be the one who would try to help make amends. Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. This was just written for fun.</strong>
</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>George's POV</strong>
</p><p>George tried to come up with something to say that would make Hermione stay, but he could not come up with anything. He opened his mouth a couple of times, but no words came out.</p><p>Hermione was long gone anyway though. He sighed instead and sat down, covering his head with his hands. It was no wonder why he was not seeing anybody then. He could not even come up with comforting words right then. He could feel that Fred's eyes were on him without even looking up.</p><p>"Merlin, what in the world was that about?" Fred asked incredulously as George looked up again. He shrugged as he picked up the plates to carry them to the kitchen sink.</p><p>"I just wanted her to know that she was still missed by us even though Ron doesn't really want to talk to her anymore." He turned around and saw that Fred was standing there quietly with his hands in his pockets. "What?" He demanded, knowing that he wanted to say something.</p><p>"It is going to be an awkward situation for all of us," Fred answered quietly. George raised an eyebrow. "So? If Ron can't handle it, that it is <em>his</em> problem. She needs friends right now. Her parents<em> died</em>, Freddie. They were killed by Death Eaters." Fred's eyes widened as he heard that news.</p><p>"In fact, I think that I am going to pay ickle Ronniekins a visit," George said, getting his jacket on.</p><p>"I do not think that is a good idea," Fred said slowly, following his twin brother downstairs to their shop.</p><p>"Why not?"</p><p>"Mum just informed me that he is back together with Lavender Brown again." George accidently dropped the glass that he had been holding in his hands when he heard that news.</p><p> His eyes widened, and he shook his head. "Merlin… well I am still going to pay him a visit," George grumbled, and he disapperated with Fred following suit.</p><p>George was always glad to be home. This time was no different, and when the twins walked in, they saw that everybody was eating. George was pleased to see that Harry Potter was sitting there with their sister, Ginny. They had recently started going out again after the war ended. Molly Weasley's fork fell against her plate as she saw them walk through the front door.</p><p>"OH! Fred! George! We were not expecting you to be here until the weekend!" She said happily, clapping her hands together and immediately standing up to fix them a bowl of soup and bread. She was beaming at them as she waved her wand in the air to get the bowls.</p><p>"Yeah, well we wanted to surprise everybody," Fred said, answering before George could.</p><p>George wasn't paying attention though. His eyes had spotted his little brother and his girlfriend, Lavender. "Hello little brother," George said lightly, taking a seat in front of the two. He saw that Ron's eyes narrowed suspiciously at the tone he used. George heard Fred sigh helplessly as he took the seat beside him.</p><p>"I see you moved on quickly," George noted airily, and he could see that the comment struck a nerve.</p><p>"My love life is none of your business, George," Ron grumbled angrily as he began stuffing more bread in his mouth.</p><p>The sight caused Lavender to roll her eyes and shake her head. "Honestly Won-Won, how many times have I told you not to talk with your mouthful? Here, you've got some food on your mouth," She trailed off and picked up his napkin to clean his mouth for him.</p><p>George glanced at Fred sideways, and saw that the corners of his mouth had twitched in amusement at the nickname Lavender used for Ron.</p><p>He was pleased to see that he was going to be on his side after all. Ron had seen the twins pass looks at each other, and George knew that had made him angry. He knocked her hand away and took his napkin from her.</p><p>"I can take care of it myself!" he snapped, and Lavender sighed as she looked down at her bowl. She put her spoon down and stood up. "Fine! If you don't think you need me then I am going for a walk!" She stormed out the door, and Ron glared at the two.</p><p>"Why did you two have to show up here <em>today?" </em>Ron asked them angrily. The twins looked at each other in amusement.</p><p>"That was all you, Ickle Ronniekins," Fred teased him happily.</p><p>Their mother sighed from across the table. "Boys, can't you leave your brother alone just this once?" She asked in an exasperated voice.</p><p>"They didn't start it that time," Ginny and Harry said together at the same time.</p><p>The twins glanced at each other again. George thought about teasing her about how Ginny and Harry were a perfect fit for saying things at the same time. But then he realized she did get them out of another lecture from their mother. He instead smiled at her, and she answered back with a grin.</p><p>"May I be excused?" Ron asked, standing up and began picking up his dishes.</p><p>"No," The twins answered together at the same time, causing Ron to glare at them angrily. He had been asking their mother permission after all.</p><p>"Since when are you two the boss of me?" Ron asked them bitterly, crossing his arms.</p><p>"Since we decided that we didn't like your attitude. We came here to talk to you," George answered truthfully, standing up and motioned for Harry and Ron to follow him. Fred glanced at George curiously, though he followed suit. "Sorry mum, we'll be back to finish this," he told her apologetically.</p><p>"It'll get cold!" She called after them, but they had already headed off into the living room to have a little talk with their brother and his best friend.</p><p>The twins stood by the fireplace as Ron and Harry sat next to each other on the couch. Ron was looking furious of course. Harry was looking at the twins curiously though.</p><p>"What do you guys need to talk to us about?" He asked them curiously.</p><p>"Hermione," the twins answered at the same time. Ron and Harry glanced at each other at the same time, and an uncomfortable silence fell between the two.</p><p>"Have you two written to her at all these past couple of months?" George asked, and they both started stammering responses at the same time.</p><p>"I proposed to her…look how that turned out!" Ron muttered bitterly.</p><p>"I've been busy, the door swings both ways. She hasn't written to us either!" Harry answered quickly, though he fell quiet when George crossed his arms.</p><p>"So this is how the great friendship of seven years falls apart? All because of a rejected proposal and no written letters? I expected better from you two. Did you know that her parents died?" He glared at the two when they fell silent as they glanced at each other. Harry's face paled slightly as he received the news, and Ron looked out the window.</p><p>"No," Harry answered finally, running a hand through his hair nervously.</p><p>"Well if you two want a chance to fix your friendship with her, there is your chance. I can't make you repair it, but it is a shame that it is falling apart if you ask me. I thought the war would have helped make you two grow up. Fred and I have," George said crossly, looking at Fred who had been standing next to the fireplace.</p><p>It was true though.  Some of their friends die in the war, and it helped change their perspective in life a little. He watched as Harry looked as if he was deep in thought. Ron seemed like he was having a fight with himself.</p><p>Harry glanced sideways at Ron, though George knew he was going to do the right thing before he even said it. "We have to visit her, mate."</p><p> Ron looked away when Harry said this. "You go on then," he muttered softly. "I can't face her right now. Not after…" his voice trailed off, though it was obvious that he was thinking about the proposal.</p><p>Harry looked sideways at him. "She would do the same thing for us," he argued, though George knew that it was no use. His brother was wearing the stubborn look he got whenever his mind was made up. He only hoped that his younger brother would come to his senses soon.</p><p>The twins and Harry left Ron alone with his thoughts in the living room after Harry said that he would head over there soon.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thanks for reading! </strong>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione decided to go home to her flat for the rest of the day after doing errands. She had just unlocked her door when she felt a hand touch her shoulder.</p><p>She jumped in fright and whirled around with her wand in her hand. The war may have been over, but people knew who she was and what her role had been in it. She felt like Mad Eye, an Auror who had died on a rescue mission.</p><p>He had always been extra cautious and jumpy when he was alive. When she saw who had touched her, Hermione nearly dropped her wand to the ground. It was Harry!</p><p>Hermione's eyes widened in surprise, and she was torn with deciding whether she should ignore him or hug him. Her legs had frozen in place while they stood in front of each other.<em> How long had it been since they last saw each other?</em> Hermione wondered to herself, though she realized that it had been since they fought at the battle of Hogwarts. She was relieved when Harry was the first one to speak finally.</p><p>"Hello, Hermione," He greeted her softly, and the corners of his mouth twitched into a small smile.</p><p>Hermione continued to look at Harry with round eyes. She almost could not believe that he was there right then. "Oh, Harry!" Hermione answered tearfully, throwing herself into his arms to give him a tight hug. She buried her head into his shoulder so he would not see her crying. She was not crying because she was sad for once though.</p><p>She felt Harry giving her a couple of awkward pats on the back. Seconds later, she heard him say in a strangled voice, "Hermione, I can't breathe!" Hermione wiped her eyes and quickly apologized to him.</p><p>"It's no problem," Harry answered casually, brushing her apology away. Hermione was glad to see that he was still smiling though, and she immediately invited him inside. They had not spoken in a couple of months, and she was curious to know why he showed up unexpectedly like this.</p><p>When they were inside of her flat, she offered to make dinner for him, though he shook his head in response. "No, I had dinner at… a while ago," he answered, catching himself in the middle of the sentence. Hermione narrowed her eyes slightly at his hesitation, though smiled once again. "It is so good to see you!" Hermione said happily, walking over to her couch finally so they could sit down and talk.</p><p>"It's good to see you too, Hermione…I'm sorry I didn't write you," Harry added the last part quickly. Hermione shrugged lightly before answering back. "Me too, I just had so much on my plate…how have you been?" She asked, wanting to avoid talking about herself for a bit.</p><p>"Good…I'm living at the Burrow for a while. Ginny and I are engaged," he said happily, and she widened her eyes in surprise.</p><p>She squealed in delight before hugging Harry tightly again. "Oh my goodness, that is amazing news! Why didn't you write me about that?" She asked when she pulled away. "I have been hoping you two would get together again for ages!"</p><p>Harry shrugged sheepishly. "It actually just happened last night… I wanted to tell you in person," he answered finally, though he started grinning.</p><p>"We've been really good. We don't have a date settled yet because I just asked her yesterday, though Ron thinks…" his voice trailed off, and Hermione could feel her face flushing at the sound of Ron's name.</p><p> She focused on a coaster sitting on the table in front of her. An awkward silence fell between the two, though she tried to clear her throat to speak, but she could not so she took a drink of her water.</p><p>"Did Ron tell you about how he proposed to me?" Hermione asked in a tentative voice finally. She knew that he must have because of the silence that followed after his name was said. Harry stayed quiet for a few moments though he nodded.</p><p>"Yeah…he told me about the kiss too," Harry said in a low voice. Hermione turned red and looked down at the coaster again. "Oh," she managed to say. Her voice sounded like it was high pitched, so she took another drink of her water.</p><p>Hermione felt like an explanation was necessary because Harry was best friends with both of them. She felt bad about how Harry was caught in the middle of one of their fights again. Hermione was not sure if she and Ron were even fighting, though she knew that they were not talking at the moment. She figured that it would most likely be awhile before they talked again.</p><p>"Harry, I'm sorry," Hermione began tentatively. Harry started to look shocked at her apology, but she shook her head quickly and held her hand up so he would let her finish.</p><p>"I've ruined our friendship…I thought it would be possible for Ron and I to be more than friends at one point… I let the idea of it grow for a while. When we kissed, I realized that I didn't have any feelings for him really. I didn't mean to lead him on, I never wanted our friendship to end."</p><p>Harry was definitely looking uncomfortable now. "He might just need time," he began, though Hermione knew it was a lost cause. <em>Harry</em> didn't see the look on Ron's face when he left her.</p><p>"I just feel awful that you are in the middle of this…that was why I didn't write. I was sure that you wouldn't want to speak to me again," Hermione finished finally.</p><p>Harry looked at her as if she had grown a couple of heads or something. "I wouldn't have stopped being your friend because you said no to Ron," he argued, though he fell silent when Hermione gave him a look. They all had stopped talking to each other at the same time after that.</p><p>Harry sighed and ran a hand through his hair uncomfortably while looking down at the ground. "I'm sorry, Hermione. We should have handled it better… I'm sorry about your parents too."</p><p>Hermione looked up at Harry incredulously. How had <em>he </em>known about her parents dying? She knew she hadn't said anything about that yet. Nobody else knew outside of her family except for… "<em>George," </em>she murmured under her should have thought of him in the first place!</p><p>Harry nodded when she said his name. "The twins visited the other day. He told us about your parents, and I knew we had to visit…But he is not the only reason why I am here. I have to ask you a question."</p><p>Hermione realized that Harry had meant Ron knew as well when he said we. Her heart crushed when she realized that he knew but chose not to come after all. She now knew how angry he was with her then. Hermione shook her head out of her thoughts when Harry spoke again.</p><p>"Ginny wanted to here to tell you this, but she said I could tell you…we want you to be the maid of honor." Hermione blinked at the sudden change of subject, though she started beaming and nodded excitedly. A wedding would definitely distract her from thoughts about her parents and Ron!</p><p>"There is just one catch though… Ron is going to be the best man."</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thank you for reading! </strong>
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<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
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    <p>Hermione sat back down on her couch after Harry left, deep in thought. She absentmindedly reached down to pet Crookshanks, who had rubbed up against her legs and started purring. The sound made her smile, though she did not pick him up.</p><p>Harry was getting married to Ginny. Hermione was going to be the maid of honor. She was rather excited and honored about that part. <em>Ron</em> was going to be the best man. Hermione wasn't looking forward to that part, though she realized that they were going to have to talk during the times the best man and the maid of honor collaborated in their duties.</p><p>It would be her chance to make up to him as friends! He couldn't ignore her then. Hermione was grateful that Harry had come over to talk to her and that he had forgiven her. She only wished that Ron had as well.</p><p>If only George had gotten through to his brother…</p><p>She paused while taking a drink of her water when she thought about George. He was the one that told Harry to come visit her. Hermione made up her mind to visit George to thank him for talking to her friends. She decided that she wasn't mad at all for him telling them about her parents. Hermione grabbed her jacket and went outside to go down the street.</p><p>
  <strong>George's POV</strong>
</p><p>George Weasley had his nose buried in a clipboard and kept checking items off of the list. Today was inventory day, and the twins had Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes closed for the afternoon so they could complete the task.</p><p>"Do we have self writing quills?" He called out to Fred, who was across the store rummaging through boxes for him. He waited a few seconds, and he heard Fred yell, "GOT IT!"</p><p>"Pygmy Puffs?" Fred gave him the thumbs up when he found them. They kept going back and forth, though he seemed like he was getting further and further away.</p><p>He looked up after checking more items off their list and saw that Hermione Granger was standing outside of their shop. A grin spread across his face when he saw her. He immediately figured that her visit this time must have meant that Harry had visited her and that his mission had been accomplished. He walked over toward the door to open it for her. The shop was closed right then, but George could gladly use a distraction then.</p><p>"Hey Granger," He greeted her with his usual greeting smiled while standing aside to let her in. At the sound of the bell dinging, he saw that Fred had poked his head out of the aisle to see who had arrived.</p><p>Hermione grinned back at George and waved at Fred when she spotted him. George was pleased to see that she seemed more cheerful during this visit than she did the last time he saw her.</p><p>"What do we owe to the pleasure of this visit?" Fred asked teasingly, and Hermione looked over her shoulder at the sign on their door.</p><p>"Well, I saw your help wanted sign on the window for one thing," Hermione began, and George looked at his twin brother. Fred looked equally as awed as George felt then.</p><p>"Are my ears deceiving me?" Fred asked him. George shook his head. "No, I think you heard right!"</p><p>The two looked at each other quietly before looking back at Hermione. George knew that Hermione was brilliant at everything she did, so he knew that she would make an excellent addition to their shop. They knew what she had done so far without seeing any applications. Ron had told them everything that had happened when they were out hunting horcruxes. They also did finish You- Know-Who after all.</p><p>He was just surprised that she still wanted to work for them. He knew that she volunteered at the hospital, but he always expected her to go onto bigger things after that.</p><p>Fred nodded at him, and they said together, "You're hired!"</p><p>Hermione beamed at the two of them. "Really? I don't have to fill out any paper work or anything?" George looked at her like he thought she was crazy and the twins crossed their arms. He chuckled and shook his head. "No, no, no, no. We know all about you already, Granger."</p><p>"Yeah… you can start Wednesday, if you'd like. We can take you to dinner, on us tonight!" George turned to give his Fred a look for saying that.</p><p>He raised a questioning eyebrow at Fred, and Fred gave him a meaningful smile that showed him that he was up to something. Only this time, George did not have the slightest idea what he was up to. They never had taken new employer's out to dinner before. He had no idea why they were going to start doing that now. He was about to ask Fred about it when Hermione started speaking again.</p><p>"Ok… I'm a bit afraid about what you do know about me though." Hermione said, looking surprised at this treatment as well. She must've gotten over it quickly because she quickly said, "George, I want to thank you for telling Harry about my parents… I wish I hadn't been too stubborn to talk to them first myself." Hermione said quietly, and George flushed slightly.</p><p>"It was no problem," he murmured, as he put his hands in his pockets. "I just didn't want a great friendship to go down the drain like that. It would have been a shame." Hermione nodded quietly and seemed like she was deep in thought.</p><p>"Did you talk to Ron as well?" The twins looked at each other uncomfortably. George didn't know what to say to this question at all. He didn't want to admit that he had failed getting through to his younger brother.</p><p>Fred narrowed his eyes before saying, "Our little brother is a stubborn git…he'll eventually come around. If he does not, we are here for you. Harry is too."</p><p>Hermione did not look reassured by this idea, and Fred nudged her slightly. "Cheer up Granger! It is his loss anyway for not wanting to visit you."</p><p>George knew that wasn't working, so he closed his inventory notebook just when Fred asked, "How about that dinner? I'm starving. We can go to the Leaky Cauldron."  George grabbed his twin's arm when Hermione nodded and headed toward the door.</p><p>"What is this about?" He demanded quietly, though Fred's smile only grew as he shrugged. "I just figured it would be a perfect way for us to get to know each other that is all!" His eyes wore the innocent look that he usually reserved for their mother and professors when they got in trouble.</p><p>"I don't believe you," George murmured, narrowing his eyes. "You are planning something. Why can't I be in on this?"</p><p>Fred shrugged innocently. "You are imagining things. Come on, she is waiting!" George muttered something under his breath as he put on his jacket while Fred eagerly headed outside. George knew that he was going to get to the bottom of this one if it was the last thing he would do!</p><p>
  <strong>Fred's pov</strong>
</p><p>Fred realized that he had left the shop a little too eagerly. He couldn't help it though. He was excited about getting a chance to know Hermione better. The twins never really hung out with her much before because she had always hung out with Ron and Harry before. But he knew that things were different between them ever since the Battle of Hogwarts had ended. It was their chance to allow her to become friends with them.</p><p>On the way to the Leaky Cauldron, he began talking her ear off about the shop. He was rambling nonstop, though he didn't know why he was rambling. George was trailing along beside them and he kept shooting him funny looks. Hermione answered questions in appropriate places, though Fred knew that she wasn't really listening. Fred had thought that talking would help since he knew that she had a lot on her mind. He held the door open for her when they finally reached the restaurant. He continued to ignore the looks George was giving him, which were now becoming suspicious as he pulled out a chair for Hermione when they went to sit down.</p><p>Fred was running out of store related topics, so he quickly ran through his mind to think of something else that would be more interesting to her.</p><p>"So, what do you two think about Harry and Ginny getting married?" he asked casually as he took a sip of water. That seemed to spark an interest for Hermione. He should have known that would get her attention from the start. It wasn't like she had completely ignored Fred's conversation about the store. She just didn't appear to be in the mood for it. He decided that he would let it slide since it was not her official first day yet.</p><p>"It's really surprising, though I'm so happy for them. I always hoped that they would get back together again someday," Hermione said, and Fred nodded casually, taking a sip of his water.</p><p>"They are having an engagement party next weekend… since we now all work at the same shop, we could all go together?" He asked hopefully, hoping that he sounded more casual than hopeful. He wondered if he was being too forward, though he wanted to be sure that George was included as well so neither of them would suspect anything.</p><p>"All right," Hermione looked thoughtful as she answered him, and he was just about to ask why when they looked up as their food appeared.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thank you for reading! Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. This was just written for fun.</strong>
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<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
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    <p>Hermione began her first day at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes a few days after she quit volunteering at St. Mungo's. She was glad that she had an actual job, though she was surprised that she was working for the twins now. Hermione had never thought she would be working for them back when they first started making orders back in their Hogwarts days. She hoped that they wouldn't accidently poison her or anything. She stood outside of their shop and mentally braced herself for her first day.</p><p>Hermione knocked on the door finally and saw Fred heading over to open it. "Morning, Granger," he said, standing aside to let her in. Hermione smiled a greeting and was glad that he seemed like his old self so far this morning. She thought that he seemed weird when they had dinner together the other night. She didn't know him too well yet though, so she couldn't exactly pinpoint what was weird about him that night.</p><p>"Good morning, Fred!" Hermione greeted him, deciding to resist the urge to joke about his behavior from the other night. She didn't think that it would be professional to tease her boss about something like that, even if it was just Fred Weasley. When Fred closed the door, he placed a hand on her shoulder and steered her toward the counter. "I was thinking that we could have you start off by stocking shelves and helping out with inventory," he said casually. Hermione raised an eyebrow curiously because her first task seemed much easier than she expected it to be.</p><p>"<em>That's it?" </em>Hermione was unable to stop herself from asking that in amazement.</p><p>This caused a smile to appear on Fred's mouth and he crossed his arms. "Why, did you want to do something more dangerous?"</p><p>Hermione couldn't help but blush slightly. She thought that he probably said that because of her experience in the past year. "No, I just thought that I would be taste testing or something for you two. You made first years do that, remember?"</p><p>Fred's smile continued to grow at the memory, though it made Hermione slightly uncomfortable. "Yes, I remember," he said in that amused tone of his. "I'll be sure to tell George that you want that position tomorrow!"</p><p>"That wasn't what I meant…" Hermione sighed though she smiled when she saw that Fred was only joking. She looked around at the mention of George's name. "Where is George anyway?"</p><p>"He's away for the day on a business trip. We want to open a shop in Hogsmeade now. We have had that idea for a while, but the right time never came up until now. Zonko's closed, so we figured that we could serve students directly by buying it or adding a second store. That's why we are hiring more people." Fred answered.</p><p>Hermione widened her eyes in surprise. She had no idea that the twins wanted to add onto their business, but she thought that it was actually a brilliant idea.</p><p>"Wow, that's a…smart idea," she said, impressed. She wasn't sure if the word smart was correct, but she had to admit that it was almost right.</p><p>This caused Fred to grin widely again. "Thanks…we figured that more laughs couldn't hurt after the war. So many people died. We just want to help in our own way."</p><p>Hermione nodded, and looked down at the list of items. His last words made her think of her parents again, though she knew that he had not meant to make her think about that. The familiar feelings of guilt appeared once more, and she closed her eyes so he couldn't see the pain in them.</p><p><em>Do not think about them! You are at work! </em>Hermione told herself sternly. She couldn't start crying now. She admitted that she was doing better sometimes, but the loss of her parents was still great. Sometimes the smallest thing like this set her off. She hated it. She swallowed to help keep her throat from tightening up and opened her eyes.</p><p>When Hermione opened them, she saw that Fred was giving her a concerned look. When he opened his mouth to talk, Hermione shook her head and grabbed a box that was on the counter.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I need a minute…I'll just sort this out first," she said, before walking toward the furthest aisle away from the counter. She had to have this moment to collect herself or she would never make it through the work day. She sank onto the floor and set the box on the ground before burying her head in her hands. Hermione did not plan on giving in to her tears, but that is what happened when she sat down.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>Fred's POV</strong>
</p><p>Fred could have kicked himself for not watching what he was saying around Hermione. He knew that talk about war was bound to upset her, but he had forgotten until after the damage was done.</p><p>He had thought about leaving her be for a few moments, but then he realized that she had taken one of the boxes that held contents for a new invention that him and George wanted to work on. When he made up his mind to find her, he kept reminding himself to be gentle.</p><p>"Be George!" He muttered to himself. George was better at comforting people than he was. Fred often felt uncomfortable and wanted to avoid these types of moments as often as possible. He knew that he could not really be George. He was just Fred Weasley after all.</p><p>Fred finally found Hermione, though it did not take long at all to find her. When he found her, she had her head in her hands and sounded like she was sobbing quietly. His heart sank as he stood there looking down at her. He could not imagine what she was going through right then.</p><p>He had both of his parents still, though Fred's father almost died in his seventh year. Fred decided that he couldn't avoid Hermione like he usually did in situations like this. He hated seeing her like this. He may have been more outgoing of the two twins, but he was not cruel.</p><p>Fred slowly knelt down next to her and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Hermione," he murmured softly. The gesture seemed to have made Hermione cry even harder. She still didn't look up, though she did shake her head and waved him away. Fred would normally have welcomed this demand, but he was determined to help this time.</p><p>"Hermione…look at me, please," he said in a pleading voice. She shook her head again, and he moved closer to her and pulled her into his arms. She finally moved her hands away from her face, though she leaned her head against his shoulder and continued to cry. His heart fell again at the sight of this.</p><p>Fred was at a loss for words, but he had to say something. Even if he just rambled on like he usually did when he was nervous. "Hermione…I'm…so sorry." Fred rested his chin on her head and absentmindedly ran his hands through her hair. He realized for the first time how pretty it was, though he shook the thought away.</p><p>"I can't imagine what you are going through, though I lost one of my best friends. Lee Jordan died. He died at Hogwarts in an explosion. It sucks…we had all of these plans together. He was like our third musketeer. He was always willing to go along with our pranks. He was so brave."</p><p>Fred's voice sounded distant to him while he remembered the times the twins went on Potterwatch with Lee. His hung his head as he remembered several memories with Lee Jordan. He shook his head and looked down at her again. She had stopped shaking, and looked up at him with watery eyes. "I'm sorry," Hermione said in a tiny voice.</p><p>Fred shrugged and cleared his throat nervously before speaking again. He was not the one that needed to be comforted this time. "Losing people is hard…I'm just thankful for what I have now though. I still have my siblings, my parents, and my twin."</p><p>He cupped her face lifted it up gently and looked directly down into her eyes. "You still have people that care for you in your life. You have Harry, Ginny, your teachers…" He couldn't help but chuckle lightly at that one. The teachers at school always thought very highly of her. "You also have George and me," he added as an afterthought.</p><p>Hermione closed her eyes again and shook her head lightly. "I can't have all of that," she whispered. Fred watched her open her eyes and look off into the corner as if it had suddenly grown interesting. He opened his mouth to ask why not, but he closed it again. <em>Patience,</em> he ordered himself sternly.</p><p>A moment later, Hermione spoke again. "I can't have all of that because it's <em>my </em>fault that my parents are dead. It's <em>my </em>fault that they didn't have their real memories when they died. I didn't even get to say goodbye. I failed them, Fred. I was supposed to be able to come back for them. But I was too late. I was too late." Her voice had gone softer as she said those last words.</p><p>Fred brushed his thumbs against her cheeks to dry her tears and looked into her eyes again. "<em>No</em>," he began in a harsh tone. "It is not your fault. You did not kill your parents. The Death Eaters did. You were giving them their best shot at living while our world was at war. You protected them the best way you knew how, and you know what? I think it was brave. It must have been hard for you to know that they didn't remember you anymore. But you sacrificed yourself for their safety. <em>Do not</em> feel guilty about their deaths. You did the best you could do." When Fred finished saying that, he brushed her hair away from her face and tucked it behind her ears.</p><p>Hermione began looking up at him as if she was seeing him in a different light. She startled him slightly when she threw her arms around his shoulder and hugged him tightly. But Fred relaxed after a second and wrapped his arms around her as well. Hermione pulled away from him after several moments, and she took in a few gasping breaths. He was relieved to see that she was not crying anymore though.</p><p>Fred had to fight back a small smile when he saw that. <em>He had successfully comforted somebody! </em>He thought happily to himself. <em>Wait until he told George about this!</em> He shook his head as soon as that last thought came. He felt like this moment was too private to be shared, even with his twin. He decided not to tell George about this when he came back.</p><p>Hermione sat up straight and looked at him in the eyes again. "Thank you. I'm sorry for starting the day off like this. I'm sorry that I made you open the shop late."</p><p>Fred gave her a genuine smile, which was rare to be seen on him. "Don't worry about it," he said calmly, shrugging. He decided that now would be the time to gently take the box away from her. "This box is top secret though."</p><p>He reached for her hand and pulled her up. "I'll show you where yours are at." Hermione nodded, though when he was about to turn, she reached over and hugged him again. This caused Fred to smile again even though she could not see it.</p><p>"Thanks for being my friend…especially after what I did to your brother," she murmured, and he nodded casually. "George and I will always be there for you," Fred answered in a low voice while brushing her cheek with his thumb softly. He placed a grin on his face and pulled her toward the registers again, hoping that the day would go much better for her now.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: I decided that Lee Jordan died in the same way that Fred died since Fred is alive in this story. I hope nobody minds that too much! Thank you for reading! Please leave a review! Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. If I did, Fred Weasley wouldn't be dead.</strong>
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<a name="section0007"><h2>7. Chapter 7</h2></a>
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    <p>Hermione woke earlier than usual on Saturday morning. Saturdays were usually her days to sleep in, though she couldn't fall back asleep for some reason. She suddenly realized why a few moments later. She was going to see her best friends again that day! That realization caused her to sit up and get out of bed. Hermione was definitely too nervous to sleep any longer. </p><p>Hermione was anxious to see Ron again, and Harry as well, though they were all right now. They had written a few times since he visited her. She had thought about writing to Ron again, but she decided that it would probably be best to talk to him in person again. She <em>hoped  </em>he would not ignore her later that night. He could be quite stubborn when he wanted to be. She still wanted to try to repair their friendship. She did not know if they could be friends like before though.</p><p>Hermione sighed when she saw what time it was. It was only just before eight. She couldn't sit here and worry about the night until work started. She had to have a distraction.</p><p>She decided to go to the twins place to surprise them with breakfast. It would keep Hermione occupied, and she thought it would be a good way to say thank you for what they have done for her. They have become better friends, which surprised her. She never knew what to expect while working with them. Being friends with them still was not the same as being best friends with Ron and Harry. Hermione still missed her friends deeply, though it was nice being around the twins constantly.</p><p>The twin's shop did not open until noontime on weekends, though Hermione was counting on them to be in bed at this hour. It was past eight when she unlocked the door with the key they had given her. She climbed up the stairs and opened their door and saw that neither of them were around.</p><p>She smiled to herself before heading toward the kitchen to make breakfast for them. Hermione knew the breakfast would not be a surprise once she started cooking. The smells were bound to wake them up first if the noises did not.</p><p>Sure enough, Hermione heard a door open after she started cooking eggs. When she turned around, she saw that it was Fred. He yawned and sleepily ran a hand through his hair. He blinked in surprise when he saw Hermione was there.</p><p>"Merlin…Granger, what are you doing here?" he asked her, while walking over toward her.</p><p>Hermione met his eyes as he walked closer. "I just wanted to thank you for the other day," she answered, shrugged shyly as he continued to look at her in awe.</p><p>"You don't have to do this," Fred started to say.</p><p>Hermione waved him off. "It's no trouble, really. Do you like pancakes?" He nodded wordlessly, and she started to make those as well.</p><p>"Is there something I can do to help at least?" Fred asked.</p><p>Hermione was going to say no, but then she caught the look on his face. He looked like he genuinely wanted to help her. She didn't want to stir up any hard feelings by saying no, so she nodded toward the fruit. "You can cut the fruit if you really want to," she answered finally, and he chuckled lightly before standing next to her at the counter.</p><p>She could not help but notice that their hands had brushed past each other when he reached over to grab the knife that was on the other side of her.</p><p>Hermione looked up and saw that Fred was already looking down at her. He was wearing a small, secretive smile that made her feel flushed and warm suddenly on the inside. She did not think it had anything to do with stove either. She started to feel nervous because of the way he was gazing at her, so she quickly looked down and continued preparing breakfast for them.</p><p>A second later, she heard someone clearing their throat. Hermione and Fred looked past their shoulders and saw that George was standing at his bedroom doorway with his arms crossed. He was looking at the two suspiciously. Hermione wondered if he had seen the exchange between them just moments ago. Judging by the look that he was giving them, she thought that he had.</p><p>"What's going on here?" George asked them, narrowing his eyes slightly. The other two looked at each other quickly before looking back at him to answer him. "Nothing, really!" Hermione and Fred answered at the same time. She looked at Fred in surprise when they answered George at the same time.</p><p>Fred was looking at her in awe as well, though Hermione was the first to look away. She tried to keep her expression innocent, though the answer made George continue to look at them suspiciously.</p><p>George shook his head after watching the two for a moment. "Hermione, you aren't supposed to know that look!" George moaned, walking closer to the two of them. Hermione glanced at George curiously. "What look?" She questioned, as she raised an eyebrow at Fred. Fred was smirking now though and pretended to be busy with cutting the fruit.</p><p>"The look that Fred gets when he is trying to fool somebody," George answered. "It is usually reserved for our parents or our professors. You both have it right now."</p><p>Hermione shook her head quickly and turned back to the stove. "I don't know what you are talking about. I'm just here to make breakfast." George was now standing next to them. "Fine then… but <em>Fred</em> definitely has that look." Hermione kept her eyes down at these words, though she heard a deep chuckle escape Fred's lips.</p><p>"You are imagining things again, George. I'm going to set the table now that the fruit is done!" Fred walked away, though George had leaned against the counter to stare at his twin's back. "I am <em>not</em> imagining things," she heard George mutter to himself.</p><p>Hermione decided not to answer his comment. A few moments later, breakfast was ready. Hermione was glad when they sat down to eat.</p><hr/><p>After a short day of work, Hermione and the twins left that evening to head to the Burrow. Hermione was now fidgeting because of her nerves. When they reached the doorstep, Fred tossed a smile toward her direction. It was almost as if he could sense her anxiety. Hermione swallowed and she felt her face flush again, though she was not sure why. She managed to give him a tiny smile back before Mrs. Weasley opened the door eagerly.</p><p>"Fred! George! Oh my goodness, Hermione!" Mrs. Weasley went for the twins at until she saw Hermione. When she saw Hermione standing behind them, she pushed past them to hug her tightly. The twins pretended to look extremely offended at the thought of their mother forgetting about hugging them.</p><p>"What are Fred and I? Next door neighbors?" George demanded in a hurt tone. Hermione watched as Fred chuckled when he nudged his brother at the side. "We kind of are now, George. Our dearest mother forgot about us now that we are living <em>miles and miles</em> away."</p><p>"It's such a tragedy really," George murmured sadly, shaking his head and making noises towards her direction. Hermione winced as Mrs. Weasley continued to hug her tightly.</p><p>"Oh, it's so good to see you again Hermione! I'm so sorry about your parents, you must be devastated!" Hermione caught Fred's eye and he stepped forward toward his mother and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Mum, let Hermione breathe. Ginny wouldn't like it if you killed her maid of honor, right sis?" Fred looked over across the room toward where Ginny was standing with Harry.</p><p>"RIGHT!" Ginny called back loudly.</p><p>Mrs. Weasley finally let Hermione go while apologizing at the same time. "I'm sorry, dear. It has just been <em>so long. </em>I do wish you had stayed here while you were dealing with everything. Ron was supposed to invite you to stay." Hermione turned slightly pink at those words. Ron was supposed to invite her to stay? She definitely never received a letter from him saying that. Her eyes searched the room for him. She couldn't wait for a chance to speak to him again.</p><p>Hermione soon found him standing next to the fireplace, looking slightly embarrassed. Her heart sped up quickly in anticipation when she saw him. That feeling quickly faded when she saw somebody standing next to him. She was about to say something to him when she saw somebody sitting next to him.</p><p>Her eyes widened when she saw it was Lavender Brown. <em>Lavender Brown? What was she doing there</em>? Her heart sank. There went her chances of trying to make up with Ron. Lavender got jealous of their friendship during their sixth year. There was no way she would let Ron talk to her in this setting.</p><p>She snapped out of it as Mrs. Weasley closed the door. Hermione realized she had not said anything to her yet. "I'm sorry," she began in an apologetic tone. "It has been too long. Work has been keeping me busy," she said, forgetting that she now worked with the twins. She could not use work as an excuse anymore since the twins visited the Burrow weekly. "I hope we will see more of you now that there is a wedding that needs to be planned," Mrs. Weasley told her, before announcing that dinner was ready.</p><p>When everybody sat down at the table, Hermione let her eyes stay trained on Ron again for a few moments. Lavender narrowed her eyes and turned her back toward her purposefully. Ron carefully avoided looking at Hermione's direction, though he looked like he was encountering a rant from Lavender She sighed as she took off her coat. It was going to be a long night. She was glad that the twins were sitting on both sides of her. They began passing plates back and forth.</p><p>She jumped when she felt a hand squeeze hers under the table and she looked to the side and saw Fred was giving her an encouraging smile. George also nudged her with his shoulder and she suddenly knew that whatever happened that evening would be ok. The twins had her back, she realized with a warm feeling in her heart and gave them both a smile.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thank you for reading! Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. J. K. Rowling does.</strong>
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<a name="section0008"><h2>8. Chapter 8</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione had just started passing dishes in between Fred and Georgewhen Mr. Weasley tapped on the glass after everybody had sat down. She tore her eyes away from Ron and looked around. It looked like all of the Weasley siblings were there. She started to pay attention when Mr. Weasley cleared his throat and began speaking.</p><p>"It's not every day when our only daughter is getting married. We are so happy to have you in the family, Harry. You have been part of the family ever since you and Ron sat next to each other on the train. So much has happened since that day, good and bad. On that day, our daughter saw you for the first time. And, well…you know what happened after that. We just want to tell you that you are officially a Weasley now. Welcome to the family," Mr. Weasley winked at Harry, who had turned pink. He began shaking hands with Bill and Charlie, who were nearest to him.</p><p>Ginny was also grinning ear to ear as she gave her parents both a hug.</p><p>Fred and George took that moment to lifted their goblets up and called out " 'Ear, 'ear!"</p><p>Hermione chuckled and was the first one to respond to that by lifting her glass as well. Chuckles were heard around the table. Fred and George had been relentless about ear jokes ever since George had his blown off by dark magic. Hermione knew that it was their way of coping with the situation, and she admired them for it. When she raised her goblet, she met Ron's eyes.</p><p>The room seemed to have gone still then. He was not wearing the same hurt look he had given her before. This time it was different. It was almost as if he was questioning something. He was searching deep down into her soul. He had not looked at her like <em>that</em> in awhile. Hermione swallowed and ordered herself to breathe. She did not want to blink her eyes because she feared that the connection would be broken if she did.</p><p><em>Don't lead him on again,</em> she scolded herself. Hermione could not help but allow the connection to continue though. She missed him as a friend, and she tried to tell him with her eyes.</p><p>"Hermione, would you like some potatoes?" Hermione blinked several times when reality came back into focus. She felt slightly irritated by the distraction. She looked beside her and saw that Fred was holding a bowl toward her.</p><p>"Yes please," she answered, not really distinguishing what he had said. She took the bowl and dished the potatoes out. Hermione snuck a peek at Ron again. He looked her way one more time before he started dishing out Lavender's food. Hermione's heart fell. The connection they had moments ago had been dropped.</p><p>"You miss him?" Hermione jumped when she heard Fred's quiet voice beside her. Fred and George were both looking sideways at her with great interest.</p><p>"Yes," she admitted finally. "That wasn't what it looked like at all. I just hoped that was a breakthrough. I want him back as my best friend." Hermione was not sure why she was defensive about this. She just knew that she did not want the twins to get the wrong idea about her and Ron.</p><p>"We can help you get him back as friends if you want," Fred said slowly after looking like he had been thinking hard about something.</p><p>Hermione turned toward him and smiled at him. She was touched by their offer, though she knew how Ron would feel if there were too many people meddling in with them. They had already gone to Harry and Ron once. She knew that it would not work on Ron the second time if it did not work the first time. "Thanks, but I really should do this one by myself. You two have done so much for me already."</p><p>The twins both nodded, and Fred suddenly brightened up about something. "Hey, are you ready to be our tester yet?" he asked jokingly. George looked back and forth between them, and Fred started explaining how Hermione said she wanted to be a tester on her first day of work.</p><p>"I did not say that!" Hermione protested, wanting to put a stop to that idea before it went further.</p><p>"Did too!"</p><p>"Did not!"</p><p>"Did too!"</p><p>"Did not!" Hermione crossed her arms and stuck her tongue out at Fred.</p><p>This seemed to have amused him though because he just roared with laughter and said, "Attractive, Granger. Really." Their banter was ended by George, who started talking about an invention he wanted to get started on.</p><p>Hermione was surprised that the dinner had been normal. She was not sure what to expect because Fred had suggested that they all went together. He had been acting strange around her lately, but dinner with the twins had been like old times. She was glad about that because she liked their friendship.</p><p>After dinner, everybody went into the living room. Hermione saw that Lavender was not at Ron's side for once, so she decided to take the opportunity to talk to Ron. He spotted her walking over to him right when she made her way toward him and seemed to have grown uncomfortable at the idea of her approaching him. Their eyes met when she stood inches away, and she smiled lightly. "Hi," she said tentatively, feeling warm. This time she was sure that this was because of nerves.</p><p>Ron looked all around the room before he sighed and nodded his head toward her. He cleared his throat and spoke finally. "Hi, Hermione." Hermione's heart leapt as he answered her. He was talking to her! Maybe she had a chance after all!</p><p>Just when she opened her mouth to start a conversation with him, Lavender came back over and wrapped her hands around his arm. "Ron, I seem to have forgotten where the bathroom is. Would you mind showing me again?" She smiled sweetly at him while ignoring Hermione.</p><p>Ron's ears turned pink and he looked even more uncomfortable. "Yeah," he said after a few moments of silence. He looked back at Hermione and opened his mouth a couple of times, but no words came out. He seemed to have finally given up on them and walked away without saying another word.</p><p>Hermione watched Lavender pull Ron away. She narrowed her eyes at Lavender and crossed her arms. "That went well," a familiar voice said, and chuckled. Hermione jumped and turned around to see Harry and Ginny standing there. Her eyes brightened and she threw her arms around him first and then hugged Ginny.</p><p>"Harry! Ginny! It's so good to see you two again!" Harry wrapped his arms around her and nodded.</p><p>"It's good to see you too. How do you like working with the twins?" Ginny wore a mischievous twinkle in her eyes when Harry asked her that, though Hermione had no idea why this time.</p><p>"It's great! The store has never looked so good, if I may say so myself." The three easily fell into a conversation as if they had never been apart. Harry finally left to say hello to some more people, leaving Hermione and Ginny alone to talk. They settled into their favorite couch, and Ginny eyed her seriously.</p><p>"How are you really, Hermione?" Hermione placed her hands in her lap and looked at the fireplace. She did not like to talk about her feelings about her parents' death, and she especially didn't like talking about Ron either. Both were awkward subjects for her.</p><p>"I'm ok most of the time," she answered finally, trying to search for the right words to describe her feelings. "I miss my parents. I miss Ron too. I want to try to make up with him, but I have not had much chance to do so." She pointed toward the direction Lavender and Ron disappeared in, and sighed.</p><p>Ginny looked sympathetic, though she also looked like she was lost in thought. "I can probably help you out there. I can probably make up some wedding tradition that will force you guys to spend time together and to talk." Hermione raised an eyebrow. Earlier she did not think she needed any help when Fred and George offered, but she saw she did need some after their short conversation.</p><p>"You'd do that for me?" she asked, smiling.</p><p>Ginny shrugged her shoulders. "If that is what you want. It'd be a shame to let a friendship go to waste. You do just want to be friends again, right?" Hermione could not help but flush at those words.</p><p>"Yes," she said, hoping that her answer sounded confident. She turned down his proposal for a reason. She didn't feel anything for him as more than friends, but she never imagined that her lack of feelings would kill their relationship before.</p><p>Ginny stood up. "Ok then. I will write to you when I come up with something. I really am sorry about your parents, by the way. I wish I could have been there for the funeral." Hermione reached over and hugged her friend.</p><p>"Thanks," she said softly. She quickly changed the subject. "Congratulations on getting engaged! When is the big day?" Ginny gave Hermione a weird look.</p><p>"Harry didn't tell you?" Hermione shook her head. "No…Ron's name got brought up and things got awkward." She shrugged her shoulders to show that it hadn't bothered her, and Ginny nodded understandingly.</p><p>"It's this year. Christmas Eve." Hermione's eyes flew up in shock. She had not expected the wedding to be that soon! It was now October, which meant they had less than two months to plan.</p><p>"Harry and I decided that we did not want to have a long engagement. The war taught us that life is short, you know? I'm also off of school then. We would have had to wait until next summer if we waited longer," Ginny said in a casual tone. She looked over at Harry and watched him talk to one of her cousins with an affectionate smile.</p><p>Hermione's eyes found Fred when Ginny said life was short. She was not sure why they had gone to him though. He was taking turns playing Exploding Snap with George and Charlie.</p><p>"I can understand that," Hermione answered softly, thinking about her reasons for why she had broken up with Ron. She quickly looked away from Fred when Ginny turned to her again.</p><p>Her friend reached over and gave her a hug. "I should get going now. Aunt Muriel just went over to Harry. I must rescue him from her," she said, rolling her eyes. Hermione smiled and the two hugged tightly. Hermione watched the newly engaged couple from the sidelines. She could not help but wonder when it would be her turn to be in love.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Things are about to get interesting in this story now! The next chapter will have more Fred in it. Thanks for reading! Please leave a review!</strong>
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<a name="section0009"><h2>9. Chapter 9</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>Fred's POV</strong>
</p><p>Fred sighed when Charlie and George went back to the twin's flat for the night after Ginny's engagement party was over. He felt disappointed with how the evening went. It did not turn out the way he wanted it to at all. He had expected to spend more time with Hermione since she came to the party with Fred and George, but they only saw each other at the dinner table.</p><p>Charlie and George got out some firewhisky. They started talking a mile a minute as if they had not seen each other in ages. Fred suddenly realized that they had not seen Charlie since the battle of Hogwarts, so he supposed that was why. It took awhile for them to realize that Fred was not joining in the conversation.</p><p>Fred crossed his arms on the counter. He placed his chin on top of them and stared at the stove in front of him. It was then when Charlie and George glanced at each other before giving Fred a strange look.</p><p>"You ok, Freddie?" George asked him, walking over to stand next to him.</p><p>Fred let out a sigh before mumbling, "I'm fine." George raised an eyebrow before looking at Charlie.</p><p>"You don't sound fine. What's up?" George questioned him, and Charlie walked over to stand on the other side of him. He handed him a bottle of Firewhisky.</p><p>Fred opened it and took a swallow of it while glancing at the two. He wondered if he really should tell them what was on his mind then. Guys never shared their emotions like girls did, but George sometimes knew what was going on without words even being said between the two. It was because of their twin connection though. He wished that this was one of the times, but George looked oblivious to what was going on.</p><p>Fred took a deep breath before deciding that he should talk to them before he started acting out on the mood he was in.</p><p>"It's stupid…but do you…think Hermione wants to get back together with Ron?" he asked. He hoped he did not sound too worried. He could not stop thinking about the way Ron and Hermione had looked at each other at the dinner table earlier that night. There was no way that the look they had shared was just a friendly look. It had a look of longing in it, and something else that Fred could not put his finger on.</p><p>Comprehension suddenly filled George's face, and Charlie glanced at the two curiously.</p><p>"Why do you ask?" George asked skeptically. Fred shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. He had planned to keep his crush on her quiet because they worked together, and because he was not sure how the girl felt about him. There was also Ron to consider as well. Fred knew that his little brother would see it as betrayal if he actually acted out on his feelings.</p><p>"I just did not think she sounded convincing when she said she just wanted him back as friends," Fred answered simply, taking another swallow of his drink for a distraction.</p><p>George narrowed his eyes and remained quiet for several seconds. "You want to know what I think?" Fred opened his mouth to answer that, but George beat him to it. "I think you <em>like</em> Granger. That is why you are asking about her. That is why you have been acting so strange lately, isn't it?"</p><p>Fred widened his eyes as Charlie and George both grinned at him. He nervously ran a hand through his hair. He could deny the facts, but George was grinning at him as if he had caught him in a huge secret. Charlie even looked at him knowingly.</p><p>"I…maybe," Fred finally allowed himself to say. George raised an eyebrow and snorted at this response.</p><p>"What are you going to do about it?" George asked him curiously. Fred sighed and took another swallow of his drink. For once in his life, he did not have a single plan on how to get the girl. Back at Hogwarts, he had thought dating was so simple. He had asked Angelina out to prove to Ron how simple it was. But this wasn't just <em>any</em> girl. This was Hermione Granger. She was his younger brother's best friend.</p><p>And she was becoming one of his too, he realized with a start.</p><p>"I don't know," Fred answered quietly. <em>Would it be worth it to ask her out on a date?</em>  He wondered to himself. The thought did give him a tiny bit of hope.</p><p>"Well, I think you should pluck up some of your old Gryffindor courage," Charlie said, holding his drink up as if he was giving a toast.</p><p>George grinned and nodded good-naturedly. " 'Ear 'ear!" he cheered loudly, causing Charlie to laugh and shake his head. Fred rolled his eyes at the old joke again. George liked to say this joke at any given opportunity. He said it enough to the point it was getting old, but Fred did not want to spoil it for him.</p><p>"We'll see," he said, purposefully avoiding making a promise he might not be able to keep. This seemed to satisfy them because Charlie and George grinned. They raised their glasses and clanked them together before finishing their drinks for the night.</p><p>Fred Weasley was not one to back down from challenges, but he was not sure how he was going to win this one.</p><p>
  <strong>Hermione's POV</strong>
</p><p>Hermione received a letter from Ginny the day after the engagement party. Ginny had come up with a plan as she said she would. Hermione and Ron were supposed to plan a bachelorette/bachelor party together for Harry and Ginny. Neither of them knew what to call a combined party, but they were willing to change some of the traditions for Ron and Hermione's sake.</p><p>Hermione had responded to Ginny with her approval immediately after she received the letter. Ginny had already told Ron about the plan, but she was leaving it up to the two of them to get together. Hermione sent him a letter asking if he wanted to meet up that evening because she was off that day. She was surprised at how easily it was to write to him after all this time.</p><p>The thought immediately caused her to feel guilty when she remembered the last time they had written to each other. It was back when they were best friends before Bill and Fleur's wedding. That event felt so long ago, Hermione thought to herself. She was going to make things right again though.</p><p>Hermione did not have to wait for a response for long. She was in the middle of reading a book when her owl came back with Ron's letter. She scanned it over a couple of times because she did not dare believe her eyes at first.</p><p>
  <em>How does 5:30 at your flat sound?</em>
</p><p>
  <em>-Ron</em>
</p><p>
  <em>Ron- That sounds good! I will see you then.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>-Hermione</em>
</p><p>She paused while she reread her response over again to make sure she was satisfied with it before sending her owl off. When it left, she looked around the house and began cleaning. There was no way she could get through the next few hours with nothing to do, so cleaning helped with her anticipation a little.</p><p>After the flat was straightened up, Hermione changed clothes but decided against doing anything to her hair or putting make up on. She did not want to seem like she was trying too hard.</p><p>Five thirty arrived quickly, causing Hermione's nerves to change into anxiety. A few moments later her heart leapt to her throat when she heard a knock on the door. She quickly opened the door and saw Ron standing there. He had his hands in his pockets like he usually did in awkward situations. But he wore a small smile. The smile was enough to cause her hand to stay glued on the doorknob.</p><p>"Hello, Hermione," Ron said softly, lifting his eyes to meet hers again. Hermione ordered herself to say something, but she couldn't. Her mind seemed to have drawn a blank and she seemed to have forgotten how to move.</p><p>He raised an eyebrow at her when she did not say anything, though he gave her a normal smile. "Are you going to invite me in, or are you just going to leave me standing out here all night?" Ron asked her teasingly.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thank you for reading! </strong>
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<a name="section0010"><h2>10. Chapter 10</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione continued to stare at Ron for several seconds. She could hardly believe that he was here! He was acting like nothing had changed between them, and that threw her off guard.</p><p>She thought he would have been angrier with her like in the past when they fought. Hermione quickly replayed their moments from the night before. He had not seemed mad at her then either, but Lavender looked like she was holding a grudge against her for trying to talk to Ron again. She shook her head to clear her thoughts when she realized he was still standing outside in the cold.</p><p>"Right, sorry. Come on in," she said, closing the door behind them. She ordered herself to breathe and to focus again. <em>It's only Ron,</em> she told herself.</p><p>Hermione cleared her throat and lead Ron to her couch. "Do you want something to drink?" she asked him, walking toward the kitchen. She hoped that this talk would go much better than it had the last time he was there.</p><p>"Anything but tea," he said, looking up at her. Those words almost made her smile. She wondered if he had gotten the same feeling she had. "What do you have?" he asked her curiously.</p><p>"I've got water, butterbeer, coffee, and soda," she answered, standing over by the kitchen doorway. Ron raised an eyebrow when she named the last drink.</p><p>"What is a soda thing?" he asked, clearly sounding like he was trying to remember how to say the last word.</p><p>"It is a Muggle beverage drink that gives you energy. It is really good, though it has a lot of calories and sugar," she said, laughing lightly. Ron was interested in trying that, so she went to the refrigerator to get him one. She reached into her refrigerator for two cans, and started heading back to the living room with them.</p><p>When she set the cans on the coffee table, Ron gave it a puzzled look. "How am I supposed to open this?" he asked, picking it up and studying it. Hermione laughed softly at his reaction. She often forgot that wizards did not know much about the Muggle world. Ron gave her a look when she laughed, though he did not say anything.</p><p>"Sorry, I'll show you. It's like this," she said while demonstrating how to lift open the tab.</p><p>Comprehension appeared on Ron's face as he tried himself. He smiled when he actually got it right on the first time by himself. Hermione had to bite back a smile. She couldn't help but remember the time she helped him learn how to use a telephone properly after his first failed attempt when he called Harry before their third year. She watched expectantly as he took his first swallow of it.</p><p>He turned to her with a shocked look on his face. "This is really good stuff!" Ron said enthusiastically. "I wonder why our world doesn't carry this?"</p><p>Hermione shrugged her shoulders and let out a laugh at his reaction. "I'm glad you like it," she said, taking a swallow of her own. She only drank soda every once in a while because too much caffeine kept her up for all hours of the night.</p><p>"We should definitely have this at the party," Ron said eagerly. "Everybody will go nuts over this drink!"</p><p>This time Hermione let out a half chuckle before it was cut off. <em>There's the elephant in the room</em>, she thought. Ron seemed to realize what he said and grew quiet himself. They could joke like this all night, but that would not really solve matters at all, Hermione thought to herself. Though she found that she wished they could carry on all night because it felt like her best friend was back again. The thought made her realize how much she missed him. She looked down at her hands nervously as Ron looked over at her with a serious expression.</p><p>"So listen," they both started to say at the same time. Hermione hesitated and cleared her throat. "You go ahead," she said, nodding toward him.</p><p>"Ladies first," Ron said, smiling lightly.</p><p>Hermione widened her eyes nervously and looked away from him so she could gather her thoughts. She was never good at speeches, though she didn't know why she was so nervous. This was Ron after all.</p><p>She finally gathered enough courage to speak and turned to meet his eyes. "Ron, I'm sorry about everything," she began softly. "I shouldn't have handled our situation the way I did. I should have been honest with you from the start. I'm not very good at handling relationship stuff. I never have been, but that's not any excuse. I'm really sorry for not writing to you after the war was over. I never wanted us to fall apart like we did. I know we can't be like we were before, but I hope you can forgive me and be friends again."</p><p>Hermione took a deep breath when she stopped talking and looked over at Ron. He was wearing the same expression he had worn at the table the night before. Anxiety started to build up inside. She watched as he opened his mouth a couple of times before closing it and finally cleared his throat.</p><p>"I was mad at you for a while," he began to say. "But I finally looked at it from your perspective later. I realized that I just threw the proposal at you in hopes that being best friends would have been enough. Marriage doesn't quite work that way. You need more than just friendship and a first kiss. I realized that after that night."</p><p>Ron sighed as he sheepishly looked down at his hands. Hermione waited quietly, hoping that he would finish speaking. "I'm sorry for not writing to you either. I'm sorry for proposing like that. You actually made me want to find that one person as well. I forgive you. I hope you can forgive me too."</p><p>Hermione let out a sigh of relief before throwing herself into his arms. She hugged him tightly, hardly daring to believe that this was real. She didn't miss the shocked look on his face as he began to pat her back awkwardly.</p><p>A second later, he wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her into a tight embrace. "I missed you, Hermione," she heard him mutter softly. She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I missed you too, Ron. I am so sorry about everything. You are one of my best friends. I don't ever want to lose you like that again."</p><p>He wrapped an arm around her. "You won't," he promised her. "You're one of my best friends too. I'm sorry about your parents," he said quietly. "I don't know what that feels like to lose them. It must have been horrible. I should have been there for you."</p><p>"It's ok," Hermione reassured him. "I wanted to be alone then. I wasn't much company at that time. Your brothers have been great though." She thought he stiffened up at the mention of them, but he quickly recovered.</p><p>"Yeah, they told me about everything. George even visited the Burrow to tell me about you. I just needed time though…" Hermione nodded. She understood what he meant by that. They both needed time to distance themselves if they had a chance at being friends again. She had been afraid that they wouldn't be, but she was glad they were making up.</p><p>She cleared her throat a couple of times and reached for the pen and paper that were on the table. "So I suppose we should get back to party planning," she said, quickly trying to change the subject. She really wanted to ask about his situation with Lavender, but she thought it would be best if they didn't talk about their love lives for a while.</p><p>Ron grew quiet when she mentioned the party again. "Do you think we should still have one together? Or should we plan separate ones? I know Ginny came up with this idea to get us to talk again." He paused and shrugged casually. "It's already working and I don't really want to mess up any traditions for them. I especially don't want mum to be angry with me."</p><p>Hermione couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of Mrs. Weasley being mad about something like this. This would be something that would upset her. "I suppose we don't have to now. I would still ask Ginny and Harry though."</p><p>Ron nodded and Hermione sat up quickly. "But do you want to hang out still? You are already here. We can watch a movie or play board games. I miss you," she tentatively added that part in when she realized she didn't want him to leave yet. She waited for a few seconds before he finally nodded his head.</p><p>"All right. I could use a night to relax," he answered casually. "I miss you too," he added quietly. Hermione smiled softly to herself and walked over to her entertainment shelf to pick out some movies for him to choose. She knew they had a long road to recovery, but she hoped this was just the start of it.</p><p>Ron chose a zombie movie she wouldn't normally watch by herself. Ron found the movie amusing, which amused Hermione as well. They had sat on opposite ends of the couch during the start of the movie, but toward the middle of it she felt herself growing tired.</p><p>Ron looked over at her when she started to fall asleep and waved her over. "Come on, you can stretch on me."</p><p>Hermione sat up and shook her head. She didn't want to make things awkward between the two. "No, no. I couldn't," she began protesting, but he sighed and pulled her toward him lightly.</p><p>"Don't be silly. It's fine. This is your couch," he reminded her. Hermione hesitated and gave him a concerned look. After a moment, she snuggled against him and leaned her head on his shoulder before falling asleep.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Don't worry, Ron and Hermione are just friends! This isn't going to turn into a Romione fic. I also figured that Hermione would probably still have some Muggle things, like the soda, movies, and a television even though she's a witch. There will be more Fremione moments after this chapter. Thanks reading! Please leave a review!</strong>
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<a name="section0011"><h2>11. Chapter 11</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione found herself on her bed the next morning, though she smiled when she realized Ron must've put her there last night before leaving. She couldn't remember when he left, though she knew they both fell asleep during the movie last night. When she sat up, she found a note on her nightstand. She recognized Ron's familiar handwriting and she picked it up to read it.</p><p>
  <em>Hermione,</em>
</p><p>
  <em>I'm sorry I had to head to work early in the morning. I didn't want to wake you because you looked so peaceful. Thanks for hanging out with me. I missed you. I'm sorry for everything.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>-Ron</em>
</p><p>His words weren't anything special, though they still made her smile. Hermione was glad that the two were friends again, and she hoped they would stay that way for a long time. She just hoped that Lavender wouldn't try to get in the middle of their friendship like she had in the past. She looked at the time and widened her eyes when she saw that she was running late to work. She hated being late anywhere, even if the Weasley twins were her boss. She got ready in five seconds time and rushed down the street to where their shop was.</p><p>Hermione opened the door and looked around when she arrived. George hovered over a thick binder and Fred was nowhere to be found. She assumed that he was probably in the back room. George stifled a yawn and Hermione couldn't help but shake her head at him.</p><p>"Morning, sleepyhead," she said in a teasingly voice. Her voice caused him to jump, and she giggled lightly as he looked around and saw her standing there.</p><p>"Morning Hermione," George murmured as his eyes drooped closed.</p><p>"Did you two stay up all night?" she asked curiously.</p><p>George nodded as he fought to stay awake. "Yeah, we're trying to work on new inventions. We were looking over our list of ideas from back when we were in Hogwarts but nothing stood out."</p><p>Hermione nodded before she looked around for Fred once more. She was surprised when she didn't hear him in the back room at all.</p><p>"Where's Fred? Is he helping you out at all now?" she asked finally.</p><p>George looked up at her and sighed sadly. "No…I think Fred's coming down with something. I was going to check on him in a little while. I have to stay down here until Luna comes over though."</p><p>Hermione couldn't help but notice that a small smile was starting to play on his lips. She chuckled softly though. "I could check on him for you. That way you could have some alone time with her when she gets here," she said teasingly, giving him a meaningful look.</p><p>George widened his eyes when he realized what she meant by her words and nearly dropped a pile of papers on the floor. "It's not like that," he said defensively. "Luna's just a friend."</p><p>He turned a little red at those words, but tried to hide that fact. "While we are on the subject of relationships..."</p><p>Hermione's grin disappeared quickly and she tried to act casual at those words. She hoped he wouldn't ask her about…her thoughts were interrupted when he asked his question finally.</p><p>"What's going on between you and Ron? You guys kept eyeing each other during dinner the other night." George gave her a look and she ducked her head. She didn't like talking about her relationship with Ron even though it didn't last long at all.</p><p>"We made up last night. We're just friends." She lifted her eyes up to meet his finally to add emphasis on the next part. "I don't have feelings for him. I wanted to. There was just no spark on my part."</p><p>George looked extremely relieved when he heard that, and Hermione couldn't help but wonder why he cared so much. "Why did you want to know?" she asked gently.</p><p>She noticed that he carefully avoided eye contact and turned his attention back to his papers. "No reason."</p><p>They remained quiet for a few seconds and Hermione looked up the stairs and back at George again. "If you don't need me for a while, I could check on Fred for you," she offered. She wasn't good at coming up with ideas for pranks, though she knew she would have to start trying if she was working for the Weasley twins.</p><p>George perked up slightly when he heard her offer. "Would you? That would put my mind at ease a little… we always worry about the other when we're sick. I almost closed down the shop to be with him, but Fred wouldn't hear of it."</p><p>He shook his head in amusement before stifling another yawn.</p><p>Hermione couldn't help but chuckle. That sounded like the Fred she knew even if he was sick. "I don't mind. You should come by around noontime. I'll make chicken noodle soup."</p><p>George looked extremely relieved again and actually looked more alert. "Thanks Hermione. You've just taken a load off of my shoulders."</p><p>Hermione nodded and started to walk toward the stairs. She opened the door to their flat and walked in. She looked around and saw that the flat pretty much looked the same as it had the last time. She looked on the couch, though she saw Fred wasn't there so she headed toward his room.</p><p>She could see him sleeping when she looked in, so she slowly walked over toward him so she wouldn't startle him.</p><p>Fred opened his eyes before she even said anything when she reached his bed and smiled slightly when he saw her. Hermione felt her heart flip when he smiled at her, though she tried to ignore it.</p><p>He shifted in his bed and narrowed his eyes at her. "Hi Hermione," he said weakly. Hermione was about to answer back when he started talking again. "Are there two of you here today?"</p><p>Hermione widened her eyes at the question, and shook her head. "No, there's only one of me here today. There are two of you though," she added with a smile.</p><p>Fred chuckled lightly and she was glad to see that he still had his sense of humor. She rather liked it even though his was a bit wild for her taste. She also liked his smile though she would never admit that to him.</p><p>"Well you still look beautiful," he muttered and Hermione stared down at him quietly.</p><p>"Thanks," she said finally after a moment. She thought that he was on lot of medicine so she decided that he didn't really mean it. She smiled though she decided to ignore the comment even though it had an effect on her.</p><p>He stared up at her when she reached over and placed her hand on his forehead. "Oh, you're hot," she muttered quietly, wincing slightly. She didn't think George realized how sick Fred really was this morning.</p><p>Fred chuckled and Hermione gazed down at him curiously. "Thanks, I know I am," he answered, wearing that crooked grin of his. Hermione stared at him in amazement, though a huge grin had spread across her face at his words.</p><p>"You still have that ego even when you are sick," she said, shaking her head. She held back a chuckle.</p><p>"Well, yeah. But I hear it often so it must be true," he tossed back, and Hermione couldn't help but chuckle that time.</p><p>"If you say so," she teased back.</p><p>She grinned down at him. "I'm going to be taking care of you today so George won't worry about you. I'm going to get started on some soup. Do you want anything?" She stood up and started walking toward the door again after she said those words. Hermione glanced back and saw Fred's eyes were twinkling and knew that whatever was coming next couldn't be good.</p><p>"Yeah…you," he answered, winking at her. Those two words caused her to stop in her tracks. Her heart started dancing though she didn't want to get her hopes up. He began covering up his tracks when he saw how nervous she was. "I meant that I wanted your company, silly. Could you stay with me please? I hate being alone when I'm sick." He gave her a pleading look.</p><p>Hermione hesitated and gave him an uncertain look. "All right. But if I get sick, I'm blaming you," she warned. Fred looked rather pleased with this idea and she couldn't help but wonder what she had just gotten into.</p><p>"I'm fine with that," he said as he leaned back against his bed frame and gave her room to sit down at the end of his bed.</p><p>Fred gave her a kind smile once they comfortably settled into their spots. "We haven't talked by ourselves lately," he said, and she nodded. "How are you, Hermione?"</p><p>She stared at him and raised an eyebrow at him. "You're concerned about me when you're the one that's sick?" Hermione asked in amazement.</p><p>He nodded seriously, and Hermione looked away for a moment. She didn't like talking about herself very often because the conversation always seemed to lead up to her parents.</p><p>"I've…been okay," she answered honestly after a few moments. She closed her eyes and shook her head quickly. "I don't want to talk about…about <em>things</em> though. Please." She felt Fred wrap his hand around hers and she opened her eyes again.</p><p>"It's all right, Hermione," Fred answered in a reassuring voice. "I'm sorry. We can talk about something else."</p><p>Hermione nodded as she took in a deep breath to relax again.</p><p>"Why don't you tell me something about you that most people don't know?" Fred asked her gently.</p><p>She bit her lip nervously and tried to rack her brain for something. Hermione was usually at a loss when people asked her those types of questions. "Well…I had my first kiss when I was eight years old," she said finally.</p><p>Hermione looked over at Fred to see what his reaction was. She saw that his eyes looked like they were about to pop out. "What? I've been kissed before," she said defensively. She had only kissed three before, but they still counted as experience.</p><p>"I know you have…you've kissed my brother after all," Fred said, giving her a pointed look.</p><p>Hermione turned red at those words and cleared her throat. "We don't have to talk about that either…nobody else knows about my next-door neighbor though. We kissed on a dare," she added when she saw Fred was looking mildly interested</p><p>"Have you ever been in love?" Fred asked her seriously after a moment.</p><p>This question didn't seem to bother Hermione as much as his first one had because more people knew about. "No…I've kissed three boys in my life but I was never in love with either of them."</p><p>She nudged him with her foot lightly. "What about you? Have you ever been in love with any of the girls you've been with?"</p><p>Fred laughed and shook his head in amusement. "Ok, what did you hear and who did you hear it from?"</p><p>Hermione shrugged and brought her knees to her chest. "I've just heard that you were a player…and I heard it from Lavender and Parvati."</p><p>Fred looked at a corner in disbelief. "Well, I've only been with two girls; Katie and Angelina. Not at the same time though," he added quickly when Hermione got a strange look on her face. "Katie was my first kiss in third year. Angelina and I went out until the war ended and we broke up because of distance. We're just friends now."</p><p>Hermione nodded in satisfaction when she heard that. She had always been curious about the twin's relationships. "Parvati Patil used to have a huge crush on you," she said, grinning at the memories.</p><p>Fred looked flabbergasted at that confession. "No she didn't," he said stubbornly.</p><p>Hermione nodded her head vigorously. "Yes she did. She used to draw your name in hearts. You were popular with girls at Hogwarts."</p><p>The two laughed together for a moment before they grew quiet. Hermione decided to tell him another confession she hadn't told anybody.</p><p>"Do you remember the first time I came to your shop?" she asked nervously.</p><p>Fred glanced over at her curiously, though he smiled and nodded. "Yeah…you had a black eye from one of our punching telescopes. I'm sorry again about that," he added.</p><p>Hermione waved him off casually. "It was a long time ago…do you remember when you gave me that patented daydream charm for free?" She asked him in a softer tone.</p><p>Fred beamed at the memory. "Of course I do, you said they were <em>extraordinary</em>."</p><p>Hermione blushed when he said that and nodded. "I did say that…and I did end up using the daydream charm," she admitted slowly.</p><p>Fred looked at her in astonishment. "Hermione Granger actually used a Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes product?" He asked incredulously. "Did you use it during class time?"</p><p>Hermione shook her head. "No…I used it when we were on the run. I couldn't sleep well after…after Bellatrix tortured me. I decided to use the charm when I couldn't sleep."</p><p>"What did you daydream about?" Fred asked her gently.</p><p>"I daydreamed about—" The door opened and it cut Hermione's words off. She saw George and Luna standing at the doorway.</p><p>"There you are! Luna's here now! We're starving, aren't you two ready for lunch yet?"</p><p>Fred threw George an irritated look. "George! You forgot about the knocking rule," Fred said pointedly, throwing a pillow at him.</p><p>George threw up his hands in defense. "What did I do?" he demanded.</p><p>"You interrupted a private conversation," Luna answered knowingly.</p><p>Fred nodded. "Yes, you did. Next time knock first," he said, and he stood up.</p><p>Hermione held a hand out to stop him. "It's ok, we lost track of time. I didn't fix soup for you after all, so I should stop at the Leaky Cauldron to get some. Luna, do you want to come with?" she asked quickly.</p><p>Luna gave her a curious look, but she answered a second later. "Oh yes. I would love to go with you, Hermione. Did you know that you have Wrackspurts around you?"</p><p>Hermione shook her head quietly, though she decided not to say anything about Luna's strange comment. She was used to them by now, though they still threw her off guard sometimes. She had meant to save Luna from witnessing a fight between the twins, though she ended up with her instead. She supposed she should start trying to get along with her, especially since she hung around the shop often now. Luna was practically a second assistant at times.</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: This will be the last chapter for the day! I had edited a lot today and wanted to get some up since I am not on every day. Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. </strong>
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<a name="section0012"><h2>12. Chapter 12</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>A/N: Hey everybody! This chapter was one of my hardest chapters to write because it dealt with the reception, and my muse didn't seem to want to cooperate at the time. I hope you enjoy this. Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. J.K. Rowling does.</strong>
</p><hr/><p>The weeks flew by and Ginny's wedding day arrived before Hermione knew it. She had spent the night in Ginny's room at the Burrow, and Ginny had woken up at the same time as Hermione had. A grin spread across Ginny's face as she glanced over at her.</p><p>"I'm getting married today," she said in an excited voice.</p><p>A chuckle escaped from Hermione's lips. "You're getting married today," she repeated. She found herself feeling slightly wishful when she said those words.</p><p>Ginny giggled as she did a little dance on her bed before spotting something on the night stand. "Hey look, flowers," She said, getting off the bed to look at them. "They're beautiful."</p><p>Hermione looked over and saw a small bouquet of pink roses. "Harry did a good job," she said, automatically thinking that he had sent them to his soon to be bride. She would have to tease him about that later on.</p><p>"They're not for me," Ginny said quietly, gazing down at the card. "They're for you."</p><p>"What?" Hermione scrambled over to Ginny. Her heart was racing as she peered down at the tiny card. Ginny held it up so she could read it. The card just had her name on with nothing else. She turned the card over and saw there was no name on it. "I don't understand," she said quietly. "Who could it be from?"</p><p>Ginny laughed when she asked the last question. "You're seriously asking that? You've got a secret admirer," she said, wagging her eyebrows up and down.</p><p>"It isn't Ron," Hermione answered automatically. She knew he was smitten with Lavender. She didn't understand how they worked as a couple, but love was weird sometimes. People can't always help who they fall in love with.</p><p>Ginny giggled as she sat down on her bed again. She let her legs swing back and forth a little as she leaned back. "No, I don't think its Ron either. You might find out tonight though," she said teasingly.</p><p>Hermione frowned and turned to look at Ginny. She narrowed her eyes when she saw her friend wearing a bemused expression. "You know something," she said accusingly.</p><p>Ginny's eyes just twinkled in reply. A flustered Mrs. Weasley came into the room. "Are you girls up yet? Come on, let's get you downstairs."</p><p>"Mum, remember what I said," Ginny said, groaning as she stood up. "No over stressing… I don't want my wedding to be a chore to you," Ginny said, rolling her eyes at Hermione.</p><p>"I'm not over stressing!" Molly said, as she came over to Ginny. "It's not every day when your only daughter gets married. I want every minute to be perfect for you," she said, running a hand through Ginny's long red hair.</p><p>Ginny hugged her mother tightly, which was a rare thing for her to do. "It will be perfect. I'm marrying my <em>chosen one</em>," she said in a teasing voice.</p><p>Molly grew teary eyed and embraced Ginny tightly.</p><p>Hermione started walking over toward the door. She felt awkward for witnessing this moment, though she knew that neither of the two minded her being there. She was Ginny's maid of honor after all. "We should probably head downstairs now," Hermione said quietly.</p><p>Ginny beamed and looked over at her. "Come on!" she said happily, making her way out the door.</p><p>Hermione was surprised to see the twins and Luna at the bottom of the stairs. She wasn't really surprised to see Luna though because she was a bridesmaid, and she usually went wherever George went these days. "What are you two doing here?" she asked, nodding at the twins.</p><p>George grinned at Fred and started to answer first. "Fred wanted to-"</p><p>"See if mum needed any help with setting up for the wedding. We are two strong men," Fred said, winking at her.</p><p>Hermione rolled her eyes as Mrs. Weasley gave them a look. "Now that you mentioned that, your father needs help setting up the tent." Mrs. Weasley shooed the twins out, and Luna started to follow them. "Luna dear, you can stay. You are a bridesmaid," Mrs. Weasley called out after her.</p><p>Luna stopped in her tracks and looked back and forth between George and the others.</p><p>"I'll see you later," she told George quietly. George looked disappointed, but he nodded before he followed his twin out the door.</p><p>Hermione and Ginny were grinning at Luna when she faced them, and she gave them a confused look. "What?" she asked them.</p><p>Hermione met Ginny's eyes and they both murmured, "Nothing." The three girls started getting Ginny ready for the wedding.</p><p>Hours later, Hermione was standing inside of the tent, waiting for Harry and Ginny to make their first appearance as Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter. Everybody was waiting for them by the entrance. "You look beautiful tonight," a voice suddenly spoke in her ear.</p><p>Hermione jumped and realized that it was Fred. She blushed and studied him from head to toe. "Thanks…you clean up well," Hermione said teasingly. Fred looked very attractive in a tuxedo, but she couldn't bring herself to admit that.</p><p>Fred pretended to look insulted at her words. "That's all I get?" he asked her, nudging her.</p><p>George and Luna suddenly joined them. "Of course that's all you'll get, mate. Hermione knows that <em>I'm</em> the better looking twin," George said, puffing his chest out in a prideful manner.</p><p>Hermione giggled. The twins had an ongoing argument about which one was more attractive, though she usually kept her mouth shut because she didn't want her opinion to be known.</p><p> Fred looked like he was about to question her on that, but Harry and Ginny had finally made their way into the tent.</p><p>"Mr. and Mrs. Harry Potter make their entrance for the first time ever," a voice boomed in the air. "And they would like to have their first dance now."</p><p>Ginny waved at Hermione and Luna as she made her way to the middle of the dance floor.</p><p>"I wonder if Harry's dancing has improved since the Yule Ball," George commented, chuckling at the memories.</p><p>"Oh, don't be mean. This is his night. He was under a lot of stress at the Yule Ball," Hermione replied, defending her friend.</p><p>Fred chuckled as well. "It really isn't that hard to dance with a girl though. I could prove it to you later," he said, winking at her.</p><p> Hermione's eyes flew up in surprise. Fred had been teasing her more lately, but she thought that was normal for him so she brushed it off. This was too blunt for him. She could feel her cheeks growing warm, though she was saved from responding when Ron came over to them.</p><p>"They want the best man and the maid of honor to dance next," Ron said, looking at the two curiously.</p><p>"Ok. Save me a spot at our table?" She asked Luna before she looped her arm through Ron's and headed to the dance floor.</p><p>Hermione enjoyed chatting with Ron again, though she was glad when the song stopped playing. This meant that she could stop dancing with Ron. She didn't mind the dance so much, but being this close to him brought back memories that she didn't like thinking about.</p><p>She could tell that he was thinking about them too, by the way he was gazing into her eyes intently. The two were friends again, but things were still so oddly formal between them. Ron was dating Lavender, so that made tension high between them.</p><p>When the song ended, Ron hugged her and walked over to Lavender.</p><p>A second later, somebody had tapped her shoulder. She blinked when she saw it was Fred. He cleared his throat and held out his hand. A small smile appeared and Hermione gazed around the room to see if anybody else was watching them. "Would you like to dance with me now?" Fred asked her in an amused voice.</p><p>Hermione hesitated, though she didn't really know why she hesitated. A part of her wanted to be careful when it came to Fred Weasley, though another part of her wanted to dance with him.</p><p>She surprised herself by agreeing to dance with him. "Yes, I'll dance with you, Fred," she said, and he grinned as he escorted her to the middle of the dance floor.</p><p>"You are a good dancer!" Hermione said in surprise after they were dancing for a few moments.</p><p>Fred raised an eyebrow at her curiously, though he still wore that smile he had around her. "Why are you so surprised?" he asked lightly, steering her as they continued to sway with the music. Hermione wrapped her arms around his neck and chuckled lightly.</p><p>"At the Yule Ball, you and Angelina were... a little crazy. You took over half the dance floor. I can't speak for everybody at the dance, but you did scare me and Viktor."</p><p>A glint danced in Fred's eyes as he laughed at the memory. "Oh really? We were just high on butterbeer and sugar quills. Don't ever try the two together. That is what you'll get as your result. We were really trying to show up one another in our dance moves."</p><p>Hermione laughed lightly at his response. "Is Fred Weasley really telling me <em>not</em> to do something? I think this makes me want to do it," she said teasingly, and his eyes widened.</p><p>"Please invite me along whenever you do this," he begged her. "I love sugar quills. It's an unhealthy addiction of mine."</p><p>Hermione giggled and nodded. Fred didn't know that she was somewhat serious about trying this out. She would love to relax and just laugh about nothing for an entire evening. It sounded perfect. "You're on."</p><p>This made Fred's mood brighten even more, and they danced quietly for a second. "By the way, how is Krum? Do you still keep in touch with him?" Fred asked her, looking down at her again.</p><p>Hermione shrugged her shoulders. "Somewhat… we write each other once a year. He wrote me recently and told me that he was getting married to his best friend from his childhood."</p><p>Fred nodded thoughtfully. "I think I remember her. George thought about asking her to the Yule ball, but he went with Katie Bell instead."</p><p>"Speaking of George… I think George and Luna would make a very cute couple," Hermione said, grinning. "They have been spending a lot of time together."</p><p>"You noticed as well? He's actually off somewhere with her right now. I think he's finally asking her out," Fred said, shaking his head. "He needs a girlfriend."</p><p>Hermione nodded as she tried to come up with something else to say. She was suddenly aware of how close she was to Fred. "Fred?" she asked softly a moment later.</p><p>Fred's expression suddenly turned serious as he looked down at her. "Yes, Hermione?" he asked her quietly.</p><p>"I think-" Hermione was suddenly interrupted by an agitated Percy.</p><p>"Have you guys seen George? It's almost time to cut the cake, and mum doesn't start without him. She wants the whole family there," Percy said.</p><p>Fred was still gazing at Hermione intently, though he managed to look at Percy finally. "I think I know where he is. I can look for him," Fred said.</p><p>He turned back to Hermione. "You were about to tell me something?" he asked her.</p><p>Hermione shook her head as she waved him away. "Never mind. It's not important. Go find George before your mother has a fit."</p><p>Fred looked disappointed in her words, though he gave her one last curious look before heading outside.</p><p>Hermione let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding and headed over toward Harry and Ginny to congratulate them. She didn't know what she was actually going to say to Fred because her nerves got to her, though she knew it could wait for another time.</p>
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<a name="section0013"><h2>13. Kiss the girl</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <strong>A/N: This is kind of a second part chapter of the reception chapter and it introduces George and Luna! Disclaimer: I don't own the Kiss the girl lyrics and I don't own Harry Potter.</strong>
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  <em>There you see her, sitting there across the way</em>
</p><p>
  <em>She don't got a lot to say, but there's something about her.</em>
</p><p>
  <em>And you don't know why, but you're dying to try, you wanna kiss the girl.</em>
</p><hr/><p>George Weasley stood off to the side of the tent away from people at Harry and Ginny's wedding reception. He nervously tugged at his collar and shifted from one foot to the other. A second later, Fred popped up next to him.</p><p>"Are you all right, Georgie?" he asked quietly, looking over at him.</p><p>George managed a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine…I'm trying to get the courage to ask Luna out," he admitted finally. He had been wanting to do that for weeks. He had finally made that decision when he saw her walk down the aisle just a while ago.</p><p>A twinkle appeared in Fred's eyes as he patted his shoulder. "It's about time you asked her out! You haven't had a girlfriend in ages!"</p><p>George held up his hands in defense. "Hey, I've dated some. I just didn't see the point of having relationships if I didn't connect with the girl."</p><p>"So you connect with Luna then?" Fred asked him.</p><p>George grew distracted when he spotted Luna standing next to her father. His breath caught when he saw her and he lost his trail of thought for a moment. He finally shook his head though and focused back on Fred's question.</p><p>"She's become my best friend…aside from you," he added quickly, when he saw Fred open his mouth to protest that. "We connect well on that level. I have feelings for her…I want to see if there's more."</p><p>Fred pondered over that for a moment before he finally patted George's back. "Well, I think your opportunity is now."</p><p>His eyes moved toward where Luna was standing. "Go get her before somebody else does."</p><p>He pushed George forward lightly, which caused George to laugh as he glanced back at his twin. He nodded and bravely started to walk over to where Luna was standing.</p><p>"Hello, George!" Luna said brightly when she saw him standing next to her.</p><p>"Good evening, Luna," he said as she looked at him. He couldn't help but notice that she did brighten up when she saw him. This fact caused him to stammer out a sentence that even he couldn't understand.</p><p>"I'm sorry, I didn't understand what you said. Could you repeat that?" Luna asked, smiling at him.</p><p>George froze when their eyes met and he shook his head. He cleared his throat nervously and attempted to speak again. "Would you want to go for a walk with me?" he asked again, though this time he sounded a bit shyer.</p><p>A blush appeared on her cheeks, and George couldn't help but think that it made her look even more beautiful than she already was.</p><p>"I'd love to," she answered, smiling serenely at him. His heart soared as he returned her smile. Her smile was contagious, he always found himself smiling around her.</p><p>Luna began peering through the crowd to find her father. He was standing near the drinks and she waved and pointed at George to let him know that she was with him. Her father acknowledged them with a nod and George grinned broadly before offering his arm to her.</p><p>He felt braver now that she actually said yes about going for a walk with him. Luna took it and they began making their way outside. Fred caught George's eye and winked at him before giving him the thumbs up sign. George returned the wink as they made their way outside.</p><p>"That was a really lovely wedding," Luna said, smiling dreamily as she gestured toward the tent. "Have you and Fred given Harry the big brother talk yet?" she asked, looking sideways at him.</p><p>George chuckled and nodded. "Yeah, we gave him the talk last night after the rehearsal dinner. We didn't want him to think that we had gone soft or anything, just because he's the boy who lived."</p><p>He winked at Luna to let her know that he was just kidding, and a soft chuckle escaped her lips. She moved closer toward him, and they walked further in a comfortable silence.</p><p>They made their way toward the pond at the end of the yard. George sat down at the edge of it and motioned her to sit down. She joined him without hesitation, and they looked up at the sky for several moments.</p><p>"There's the Big Dipper," Luna said suddenly, pointing up at the sky.</p><p>George looked up and saw where she was pointing. "Oh yeah, I see it. Look, there's Venus right over there. See that bright one over there?" She narrowed her eyes and looked at it before she nodded.</p><p>George started speaking again. "People think that the first star of the evening is a star. But it's actually Venus. So when you say "Starlight, star bright, first star I see tonight…you are actually wishing on Venus instead of a star."</p><p>Luna looked astonished when he said that. "George Weasley actually paid attention in a class?"</p><p>He looked sheepish. "Fred had detention sometimes during Astronomy. I was bored." They laughed together, and George scooted closer to her as she looked up at the sky.</p><p>George looked at Luna during that time, and she caught him staring at her a couple of minutes later. He didn't try to cover the fact that he was staring at her, and he didn't look away when they made eye contact.</p><p>"Have the Wrackspurts got you, George?" Luna asked him suddenly. He saw her giving him a concerned look. "You should think about some positive things if they do. That'll make them go away. I thought I saw one earlier."</p><p>George looked down and chuckled softly to himself. He was used to Luna saying things like that.</p><p>"Yeah, they got me," he admitted when he looked up again. He hoped his face wasn't giving any emotions away. "I think I need your help getting rid of them," he said as a slow grin appeared on his lips.</p><p>Luna narrowed her eyes in confusion and she shifted slightly. "Well, you could try thinking of happy memories, or do something that makes you happy."</p><p>"I could do that," he muttered to himself as he slowly moved toward her. "Do you think kissing you would get rid of them?" he whispered.</p><p>Luna looked over her shoulder sharply. "Kissing me?" She asked in amazement. Their heads were much too close to each other now. "Why-"</p><p>George placed a hand on her cheek and lowered his head to kiss her lips before she could finish asking her question.</p><p>It took her a second to respond, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. His heart flipped, and he could definitely feel that spark everybody talked about when they were with somebody they were meant to be with. They pulled apart slowly after what felt like ages, though they still didn't move away from each other.</p><p>They stared into each other's eyes for a moment before George slowly wrapped his hand around hers. "Luna," he began to say softly. "You've become one of my best friends since the war ended. I don't know what I'd do without your friendship."</p><p>He saw that she was still paying attention to him, so he continued. "I value your friendship. It's important to me. But I also feel a connection between us. I don't think that it's just me."</p><p>George paused to try to come up with the right words. He finally met Luna's eyes. "Will you be my girlfriend?"</p><p>Luna smiled before she kissed him softly in reply.</p><p>George's heart danced as she kissed him, and he pulled away for a second. "Was that a yes?" he asked her teasingly.</p><p>Luna giggled as she wrapped her arms around his neck. "I thought you'd never ask," she whispered, pulling him close to her.</p><p>He chuckled as their lips brushed against each other again. He could hear Fred calling his name in the distance. George groaned softly as he reluctantly pulled away. Their alone time had been interrupted far too quickly for his liking.</p><p>George placed a kiss on Luna's cheek before he stood up. "Come on…we should probably get back. They probably miss us," he muttered, holding his hand out.</p><p>Luna and George found Fred and Hermione standing next to each other as a crowd gathered around Harry and Ginny. George saw they were about to cut the cake.</p><p>"Sorry, mum was on a warpath," Fred muttered as they watched Harry and Ginny cut their cake together. He looked down and saw him holding hands with Luna. "I take it that everything went well," he said, grinning broadly.</p><p>George looked over at his mother and saw that she was glaring daggers at him. He nodded to let her know everything was ok, and she turned her attention back to Harry and Ginny. "It's ok… everything went well," George answered him. He wanted to keep their walk private for the moment. He eyed Hermione. "Have you talked to Hermione yet?"</p><p>Fred widened his eyes and he shook his head. "No, not yet," he whispered. "Percy wanted me to find you."</p><p>George groaned. "Are you ever going to ask her out? You've got bad luck," he muttered.</p><p>Fred was saved from answering as laughter rose through the crowd when Ginny smashed some cake into Harry's face. Harry's eyes widened and he grabbed a piece to throw at her. George, Luna, Hermione, and Fred all cheered as Ginny won. "THAT'S OUR GIRL!" George called out proudly as the four laughed.</p><p>"I'll ask her soon," Fred assured George as Mrs. Weasley began passing out cake to everybody. George gave his twin a look before he returned his attention to Luna. He'd believe Fred when they were actually dating.</p>
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<a name="section0014"><h2>14. All I want for Christmas is you</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Things change between Hermione and Fred when they spend Christmas together.</p>
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    <p>
  <strong>A/N: Only posting a slight warning because this does get a bit steamy. But honestly a lot of young adult has these scenes now. Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. This was only written for fun.</strong>
</p><hr/><p> </p><p>Fred and George were getting ready to go back to the Burrow for Christmas day when he suddenly stopped in his tracks after they locked their doors. George gave him a funny look.</p><p>“You ok, Freddie?” George asked him.</p><p>“Hermione,” Fred said quietly.</p><p>George laughed softly and patted his shoulder. “I know you like her. Honestly, you need to ask her out soon.”</p><p>Fred shook his head. “No. I mean, yes, I will. But she doesn’t have anybody to spend Christmas with. We should bring her back home with us so she won’t be by herself.”</p><p>His twin’s expression softened and he nodded. “All right, let’s walk over to her flat then. And since when did you get to be the sensitive twin?”</p><p>Fred’s face turned serious. “I just don’t think nobody should be alone for Christmas, is all.”</p><p>He grew worried remembering the time that Hermione cried on her first day of working and started to walk faster toward her flat.</p><p>His heart soared when Hermione opened the door at the same time he was about to lift his hand and knock and was pleased to see that her face lit up into a smile when she saw him.</p><p>“Fred! George! Merry Christmas!” Hermione beamed at them. “I was just on my way to visit you to drop your presents off. I was hoping you hadn’t left yet.”</p><p>The twins grinned at each other before Fred grabbed her hand. “No, we couldn’t have Christmas without you.”</p><p>“Yeah, you’re part of our family,” George said easily, shifting from side to side.</p><p>Hermione’s eyes got shiny at that but he was glad to see that she didn’t cry. He was hoping she would be doing better now.</p><p>She threw her arms around George at those words and before Fred could get jealous she had launched herself into his arms too. He held her a beat longer than necessary and his heart danced when her eyes met his when she pulled away.</p><p>“Let me grab my bag,” Hermione said as she stood aside to let them in so they wouldn’t stand in the cold.</p><p>Fred caught George giving him the side eye. “What?” Fred hissed at him.</p><p>This caused George to smirk at him. “Don’t think I didn’t see that,” he teased Fred.</p><p>“Shush,” Fred muttered as Hermione bounced her way back toward them. She gave them a curious glance when they straightened at her presence again but didn’t say anything.</p><p>They grabbed each other’s hands and Fred couldn’t help but squeeze her hand before focusing on Apparating.</p><hr/><p>Hermione’s heart had lifted the moment she saw the twins had arrived at her door. She had been prepared to stay inside reading with Crookshanks in her lap, but being around the Weasley’s all day was definitely a better plan.</p><p>She had eagerly given both of them a hug without thinking about her actions. Her breath had caught when Fred seemed to have held onto her a beat longer than necessary. But no, she had to be imagining that. She also had to be imagining things when the twins automatically grew quiet after she got her bag.</p><p>And she definitely imagined things when Fred squeezed her hand before they Apparated.</p><p>But she definitely wasn’t imagining the fact that they had arrived to the Burrow and he still hadn’t let go of her hand even when George did.</p><p>Her heart danced in her chest when she glanced down and saw but continued walking towards the door.</p><p>She only let go of his hand when Molly opened the door, and this seemed to have caused Fred to meet her eyes again.</p><p>Molly had started to greet the twins enthusiastically, but she widened her eyes and wore a smile when she saw Hermione was with them.</p><p>“Hermione! I am so glad that you are here! I meant to invite you over here yesterday, but I’m glad George brought you over here.”</p><p>“It was Fred’s idea to get her,” George answered, causing Hermione to look quickly at Fred.</p><p>“Well, no matter who’s it was, you are still family. Come in, come in,” Molly said, ushering Hermione inside.</p><p>Once inside she struggled to get her coat off and Fred had immediately appeared at her close behind her to help her. “Thank you,” she murmured as she nearly melted when he placed a hand on the small of her back.</p><p>“You’re welcome,” he murmured. Their eyes met and he bent his head closer towards hers.</p><p>They made it through breakfast and Hermione spent half the time accidentally brushing hands with Fred, and her face seemed to have been growing redder by the minute. She ended up keeping her face glued to her plate so nobody would be able to see her emotions on her face.</p><p>The family piled into the living room afterwards to open presents. Hermione didn’t see any open seats available so she started to choose a spot by the fire. Fred grabbed hold of her hand and gently pulled her towards him. “You can sit with me,” he said.</p><p>“No, I couldn’t,” Hermione said when she saw that he was sitting in an arm chair.</p><p>He just wore an amused expression. “There’s plenty of room. There’s no need to sit on the floor.”</p><p>Hermione hesitated and glanced around. She had an innocent reason to cuddle up with Fred Weasley. And she suddenly realized that she did want to sit close with him. She climbed into his lap and he pulled her close to him.</p><p>He reached for a blanket automatically and wrapped it around her. She snuggled herself in and rested her head against his shoulder. She closed her eyes as he rested his chin on her forehead and started to absent mindedly massage her shoulders.</p><p>“Merlin, that feels good,” Hermione muttered. She shifted in his lap to be even closer and his expression changed as he looked down at her.</p><p>He looked like he was about to say something, but they were interrupted once again by present exchanging time.</p><p>Hermione had leaped away from Fred’s touch as if she had been shocked.</p><p>Fred looked confused by her sudden movement but then Hermione decided to pass him her present.</p><p>He opened her present and his eyes suddenly wore an eager expression. “Sugar quills and butterbeer!” he said longingly and Hermione giggled.</p><p>She absentmindedly reached for his hand. “I know how much you love those. I was serious about wanting to try that combination with you one night.”</p><p>His eyes suddenly danced as he wrapped his arms around her. “Tonight then?”</p><p>His hopeful expression made her giggle and nod. “Tonight,” she said softly.</p><p>Fred grinned at her and then Molly had handed them their presents.</p><hr/><p>It was finally night time when they got ready to leave, though Mrs. Weasley tried to insist that they stay the night. George said that he wanted to see Luna and Fred insisted that he had to make sure Hermione got home ok.</p><p>Hermione blushed at those words but she didn’t mind the departure. “Thank you for everything today, the food was lovely,” she told her as she hugged her.</p><p>“Don’t forget that you are welcome any time,” Mrs. Weasley said as she hugged them goodbye.</p><p>Ron had also come over to give her an awkward hug and they finally left and arrived at the twin’s flat.</p><p>Hermione was feeling skeptical about eating sugar quills with butterbeer, but after she took her first sip and bite she had to admit that Fred was onto something about this combination.</p><p>He watched her with an expecting smile on his face. “Well?” he asked cheerfully.</p><p>“It’s surprisingly good,” she answered as she took another swallow of butterbeer and a bite of the sugar quill.</p><p>“I told you!” Fred said as he fist bumped the air before he started munching on his also.</p><p>They didn’t start dancing all over the flat like what happened at the Yule Ball dance, but they did fall back into his bed laughing and she scooted closer to him.</p><p>They linked hands and Hermione snuggled against him. “You’ve been acting strange today,” she noted.</p><p>Fred gave her a bemused look. “Strange, how?” he asked her.</p><p>“You’ve been finding all these excuses to touch me. Or hold my hand. Like right now,” she said, holding their hands up in the air.</p><p>“I’m a people person,” Fred said, winking at her.</p><p>Hermione shook her head in amusement as she propped head in her hand and looked down at him. “Yes, but I don’t think you get like this with just anybody. Want to tell me what that’s about?” she asked teasingly, nudging him.</p><p>“I haven’t exactly heard you protest at all today.” Fred lowered his head until he was eye level with her. “Do you want to tell me what that’s all about?”</p><p>She blushed but wore an amused grin. “I’ve been cold. And you’re warm.”</p><p>Fred shook his head and they set their glasses of butterbeer aside.  She buried her head into his chest, feeling instantly at home. He wrapped his arms around her protectively but then after a while his hands started drifting and he started tracing circles down her arms.</p><p>Hermione went completely still as his hands started exploring her sides. He fumbled with her shirt and then she sucked in a deep breath when he slowly reached inside and placed them on the small of her back. She shivered at his touch, but instead of pulling away she lifted her head and met his eyes.</p><p>She melted at the tender look he was giving her.  “You sent me those flowers,” she muttered. She remembered that was what she wanted to ask him about at the wedding reception, but had immediately forgotten due to everything that went on.</p><p>He blinked at the statement, but he smiled and nodded.</p><p>“Why?” she pulled away slightly and looked up at him.</p><p>“I would have thought that answer is obvious,” Fred muttered huskily. “I’ve done all that stuff because I like spending time with you. And because I wanted to do this.”</p><p>He suddenly pulled her close to him. All of her senses were suddenly filled with him again. He placed one hand on her waist and another gently on her neck and before she had the chance to process what was happening he lowered his head until his lips met hers.</p><p>Hermione was stunned by the way his touch made her feel and didn’t respond at first. But then they were like a magnet, pulling her closer to him. She suddenly rolled on top of him until her thighs were beside his hips, straddling him. She glanced down at him and was pleased to see that he was wearing a surprised look because of the sudden change of events.</p><p>And then without giving herself a second to process or wonder what she was doing, she lowered herself until her chest was pressed against his and tilted her head to kiss him.</p><p>She paused for a second to allow him the chance to pull away if he wanted, but then she found herself lying on her back as his body covered hers fully. Her arms moved above her head and his hands wrapped around both of her hands.</p><p>Her heart was racing now and before she realized what was happening his lips had crushed against hers again and they were hungrily kissing each other. Hermione moved a leg around him and rolled her hips against his.</p><p>This movement caused Fred to suck in a breath before he fell against her. His hands were suddenly roaming everywhere again and then she found herself helping him pull her shirt off over her head.</p><p>The kissing escalated quickly again after that and then he had reached for her bra clasp and pulled that off and started placing kisses on her neck. He placed a hand on her chest and then began tracing circles around her nipple until it hardened at his touch.</p><p>And then he kissed her lower, and lower. Hermione gasped at his touch but arched her back into him.</p><p>Their breathing was growing heavier when they paused to reach for each other again. Their eyes met and Fred gave her a concerned look when her expression changed.</p><p>“Are you all right, love? Did I hurt you? Is this too fast?” he asked her softly. “Merlin, this is too fast, isn’t it?” Fred touched her tenderly.</p><p>“What’s wrong?” he asked quickly, pulling away.</p><p>Hermione stopped him by pulling her closer to him again. “The only thing that’s wrong is that <em>you </em>have on far too much clothing,” she said playfully.</p><p>It was his turn for his expression to change and he straddled her until he reached for his shirt and pulled it off.  They pressed their chests against each other and began kissing passionately again.</p><p>She reached for his waistline and began unbuttoning his pants and helped pull his pants off until he was in his boxers.</p><p>Fred rolled until she was back on top him again and began unbuttoning her pants. She reached for them and pulled them off and the kissing turned slow and sweet even when she sank into his length through their underwear.</p><p>She remained still even when he sucked in another sharp breath and held her against him.</p><p>And then just like that she ran smack into an invisible wall. It was as if someone had thrown a bucket of water over as she hesitated and rolled off him. She wasn’t sure if she was doing this for the right reasons.</p><p>Fred sat up and kissed the side of her forehead as he gave her an understanding smile.</p><p>“I’m sorry,” Hermione muttered, feeling confused. “I was thoroughly enjoying that. I don’t know what happened.”</p><p>He shook his head. “I’d never pressure you, Hermione.”</p><p>Her cheeks grew warm. “You must think I’m a tease though. I practically begged you for this.”</p><p>He lowered his head until he met her eyes again. “You’re not a tease. You want to make sure it’s the right time and right reasons.”</p><p>Hermione’s face turned red as she chuckled nervously. “Guess it was my lack of experience that tipped you off there.”</p><p>It was Fred’s turn to chuckle. He ran a hand through his hair nervously. “I don’t think you lack in experience, Hermione. I was thoroughly enjoying that too. Maybe too much.”</p><p>He nonchalantly tilted his head downward and she saw the proof in front of her.</p><p>“Oh,” Hermione squeaked out. “I’m sorry,” she said as her cheeks flamed with embarrassment.</p><p>He shook his head and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Don’t be sorry. I’m not the kind of guy to pressure you. When you’re ready, I’ll be too. Besides, there’s something I’d like to do first,” he said casually.</p><p>Hermione grew curious. “What’s that?”</p><p>He reached for her hand and squeezed it. “I’d to date you. Will you go out with me, Hermione?”</p><p>Her eyes widened in surprise as she squirmed. “I don’t know. You are my boss,” she said quietly.</p><p>His eyes sparkled. “Yes, I am. But as the boss, I know all the rules. And there’s no rules about staff romance. Well, George and I obviously never had to worry about that before. I think we’d be good for each other. What do you say, Granger?”</p><p>Hermione laughed. “Oh, its Granger again, is it?” she teased softly.</p><p>“It’s a term of endearment,” Fred answered automatically. The two burst into laughter again and their eyes met and her breath caught.</p><p>“See?” Fred said as he affectionately brushed a strand of hair away from her face. “I make you laugh and take your mind off things. You bring things into perspective for me. Dating could be fun,” he said.</p><p>Hermione studied his earnest expression. And then she surprised herself when she nodded in response. “Ok,” she answered bravely.</p><p>Fred’s face lit up and he enthusiastically pressed his lips against hers before quickly pulling away. “I’m sorry,” he said apologetically.</p><p>She shook her head in amusement. “I think we’re well past regular dating boundaries,” she said.</p><p>He nodded seriously before pulling a thoughtful face. “Would spending the night here be breaking those boundaries also?”</p><p>Hermione pretended to think about it. She really did want to stay the night with him, just not actually sleeping with him yet. “I think we already broke all the rules. It would be ok this time.”</p><p>His face lit up and he got up to find something and came back with one of his long t-shirts and one of his boxers. “You can sleep in these. I’ll sleep on the couch.”</p><p>Hermione caught his hand before he walked away and pulled him toward the bed again. “We’ve already broken all the dating rules. I’m ok with us sleeping in the same bed. As long as we don’t actually…” she trailed off and he beamed.</p><p>He climbed back into bed and she got dressed into his clothes and snuggled up with him. “I’m sorry I didn’t get you anything for Christmas,” Fred said softly, running a hand through his hair.</p><p>“You did get me something for Christmas though,” Hermione said brightly.</p><p>Fred tilted his head to give her a quizzical look as she grinned. “All I wanted for Christmas was you.”</p><hr/><p>
  <strong>A/N: Thank you for reading! I thought I would try to make this extra fluffy for the wait. </strong>
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